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[Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] so [Music] [Music] [Laughter] [Music] [Applause] [Music] welcome to worship at hennepin avenue united methodist church in minneapolis minnesota i am so happy to worship with you today times are difficult in our world and yet we gather together because god is good and god has called us to love one another our neighbors in the world but we need help learning how to do that together and so as we worship today we listen for the spirit to move us to grow to deepen in our faith and our love for one another in the world today we're going to do that by looking at the story of jonah perhaps it's a familiar story to some of you but not all of you jonah was a man who was sent to nineveh a place he did not want to go you're going to learn why in this worship service today as we wonder as we think as we seek and as god touches our hearts let's worship together now [Music] jesus christ [Music] may jesus through strength [Music] jesus may jesus christ [Music] r [Music] please join me in this morning's litany of praise praise the god of all creation worship the one who calls us speaking with a different voice offering an unexpected invitation celebrate the presence of our loving god rejoice the realm of god is near [Music] is jesus christ jesus christ please join me in today's prayer of confession it is responsive and the words are on the worship guide and on your screen let us pray loving god of all creation the tale of jonah reminds us of your never-ending love for all creation may we be like the people of nineveh who were able to acknowledge their sin and open their eyes to your healing presence though you stand ready to forgive our sin we find it easier to bite our tongues clench our fists and cling to our hurts and resentments rather than let you open our hearts we trust you holy one we pour out our hearts to you receive the pain that lurks in our humanity as we offer up what we have hidden from ourselves and from the world those words and deeds that keep us separated from your love in your mercy forgive us and by your grace raise us up that we might be vessels of love to the world now dear friends you're offered to pray in silence those prayers too deep for words hear this good news when we repent god relents lifts us beyond the pain restores us to safety and protects us in the refuge of eternal love in the name of jesus who is the christ we are forgiven let us say that together in the name of christ we are forgiven as those who are forgiven and who experience the freedom and joy a family in christ together let us share the peace jesus calls all creation to live in this eternal love and to share the realm of god this peace that passes understanding is ours to share may the peace of christ be with you and also with you [Music] i am learning to walk with grace in the dark i am learning to trust and to lead with my heart when the old moon is gone into silence in size it's the one and only time a new moon can rise sometimes there is no reason the moon waxes and waves it was the 100 year flood and you were in the way some things we find in and we're grateful to know some things we only learned where we did not want to go i can't it will tell turn out fine but i know there is [Music] [Applause] [Music] bruised and bewildered i am looking out the but i am not alone with my questions and my fears when the old moon is done a new moon appears i'm inspired and troubled by the stories i have heard in the blue light of evening all boundaries get blurred and i believe in something better and that love's the final word and that there's still something home and sacred in this world i can't tell you it will all turn out but i know there is help in hard times sure it could it could all be just fine but i know there is help in hard times all i know is there's hell in hard times all i know is there's help [Music] i hope you want to connect more deeply with the hennepin community because it's such a wonderful congregation of wonderful loving people in worship today you will hear the music renowned song singer singer songwriter carrie newcomber we are so excited to invite you to a live virtual concert kerry will be presenting us a concert on saturday january 30th at 7 p.m reduced rate tickets are available for students and groups proceeds from the concert will support hennepin's music and fine arts ministries details for purchasing your tickets are now available on our facebook page and on our website at hamc.org events on sunday january 31st we will have another church conference this time to approve the 2021 budget we have almost reached our goal but we really need everyone to invest in our ministries that are life-changing innovative right here in our neighborhood and across the world we are making a difference in christ's name christ is working through us in so many ways too many to count and in ways probably we don't even know about if you go to our website at hamc.org you will find information about how you can make a commitment for the 2021 ministries you can fill out a pledge cart there and send it in or you can mail in a pledge card to 511 groveland or you can enter your pledge on realm if you're a member of hennepin you have a realm account you may not even have known you have one you can sign up for it and if you don't know about this we can help you call the church office and we'll walk you right through it whatever way you give we really appreciate all the gifts that we have to put in invest into ministry so thank you for giving hi there friends today our scripture lesson is about jonah and a lot of us remember jonah because jonah got swallowed by a big fish or a whale so i've got some props i have a whale this is shamu and i've got an action figure and we're going to pretend like this is jonah so what happens in the bible is jonah gets swallowed up by a big whale and then a few days later the whale spits jonah out onto the beach but do you know what that's really not the important part of the story at all so let's have our whale swim away and let's talk about maybe some parts that are a little bit more important in the story so you see jonah the whole reason that he got in trouble and was in the wales valley in the first place was because he didn't do what god asked him to do god asked him to go to a place that he didn't think was very safe with people that he didn't like very much and god wanted jonah to tell those people that they needed to ask god for forgiveness and to change the way that they were living well jonah didn't like these people very much he didn't want to go hang out with them and so he tried to run away from god now eventually jonah got god's message and jonah went and he talked to the people that he didn't want to talk to they were called the ninefights but here's the big thing when the ninevites listened to jonah's message they said you're right we don't want bad things to happen to us because we're not living in ways that are safe or good for our souls so they decided that they would ask for god's forgiveness and they would change the way they were living so you see a lot of the story about jonah is not so much about living for three days inside a whale's belly it's about seeking forgiveness seeking forgiveness from god and seeking forgiveness from the people that we maybe have done wrong things against and here's the thing seeking forgiveness has a whole lot more to do with us than it does with the people that we're asking to forgive us because once we have reached out and asked for forgiveness it allows us to be in a better relationship with those people if we're asking god for forgiveness it allows us to be in a better relationship with god and when we need to seek forgiveness from someone it makes it hard for us to fully love them in the way that we should so when you think about jonah maybe think less about our whale buddy and let's think more about forgiveness let's pray dear god we are grateful that you are ready to forgive at any moment that we ask help us remember that asking forgiveness from you or from the people around us helps us to be in better relationship and in a better place to love those that we need to love in your name we pray amen have a really great week you guys we'll see you next time okay bye [Music] is [Music] silently washing their feet [Music] is [Music] oh these are the ones we should serve these are the ones we should love all these are [Music] oh [Music] this is [Music] is [Music] you this morning's scripture reading comes from the book of job i'll be reading from the new revised standard version the word of the lord came to jonah a second time saying get up go to nineveh that great city and proclaim it the message that i tell you so jonah set out and went to nineveh according to the word of the lord now nineveh was an exceedingly large city with three days walk across jonah began to go into the city going a day's walk and he cried out forty days more and nineveh shall be overthrown and the people of nineveh believed god they proclaimed a fast and everyone great and small put on sackcloth when the news reached the king of nineveh he rose from his throne removed his robe covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes then he had a proclamation made in nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles no human being or animal no herd or flock shall taste anything they shall not feed nor shall they drink water human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth and they shall cry mightily to god all shall turn their from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands who knows god may relent and change his mind he may turn from his fierce anger so that we do not perish when god saw what they did how they turned from the evil ways god changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them and he did not do it word of god for the people of god thanks be to god well the day finally came the day we've long waited for some with dread and some with excitement with expectation and anticipation for a new day on wednesday president biden's inaugural speech we heard him talk about all the challenges we faced together as a nation and we heard his call for unity he said to overcome these challenges to restore the soul and to secure the future of america requires more than words it requires that the most of elusive things in a democracy unity unity in another january in washington on new year's day in 1863 abraham lincoln signed the emancipation proclamation and when he put pen to paper the president said if my name ever goes down into history it will be for this act and my whole soul is in it and on wednesday january 20th 2021 president biden said on this january day my whole soul is in this bringing america together uniting our people and uniting our nation and i ask every american to join me in this cause he said we must end this uncivil war we must come together friends we hear this call from our new president but we must remember that we first heard this call from god for we know that god has called us to love our neighbors people of faith know that the divisions in our country in our churches in our neighborhoods and families are not god honoring but we also know just how hard it is to come together with people who have disappointed us made us mad or have hurt us so let's not pretend that this will be easy work but let us not also pretend that it is impossible with god's help all things are possible even when we resist jonah jonah jonah he was a resister wasn't he you may think of jonah as a cute children's story about a guy who was swallowed by a whale but it is really so much more it is a satire about how we resist god's mercy and god's call to offer mercy to others it is a story that is big and overblown and funny in spots and spot on as we search our hearts this january day pondering whether we can give our souls to the work of reconciliation that god calls us to to what will we give our souls to resistance anger forgiveness bridge building today i'm asking all of us to consider whether we are willing to travel to our own ninevehs you do remember the story the whole story you heard a snippet of it today from our lecter as they read from chapter three verses one through ten but some stories are told are better told than red the story of jonah begins with the word of god coming to jonah get up jonah and go to nineveh that great city of nineveh their evil has come to my attention god says and so jonah got up but he didn't head for nineveh he bought a ticket to tarshish which was an exact opposite direction but we soon learned that you can't outrun god as jonah sets sail for tarshish a great storm comes up and the storm is so great that the ship is in danger of sinking and jonah's shipmates who are not people of faith they're worried and they're scared and so they look around for someone to blame do you ever do that i do they see jonah there and they ask him who he is and where he is from he's an immigrant jonah tells them that he is a hebrew and that he says that he worships god who is the god of the sea in the dry land well that gets their attention since they're out on the sea and the sea is acting up and they ask him what have you done thinking that jonah must have done something really awful to put them in this predicament in his life and death situation jonah tells them that he is fleeing god so what are we going to do with you now so that the sea will become calm they ask there seems to be no other choice than to throw jonah overboard and surprisingly jonah grieves he says pick me up and hurl me into the sea and then the sea will become calm all around you and they did and it was now wouldn't it be great if we all we had to do to find unity in our nation would be to pick up a few people we could blame and hurl them over the board there are people who will be tempted but that's not going to solve our problems even if we round up all those we would like to blame democrats and republicans that won't bring us together it never has and it never will but the truth is we'd love to have a scapegoat we'd love to simply hurl people about with whom we disagree we'd like to hurl him overboard and sometimes like jonah we're willing to hurl ourselves overboard when we don't get our way there are times when we would like to bail and go our own way something some thinking that we can do bet life better on the on our own we wonder if we could just jump ship when the vote doesn't go our way we wonder if we should find another church or another community where people see things the way we see them but unity will never come as long as we try to make people scapegoats and as long as we are willing to jump ship these ways of dealing with conflict just widen our separation but the story continues jonah is thrown overboard and god provides a whale a big fish they say in the text they didn't know whales were mammals but but remember this this is a story a satire but picture this a great big fish swallowing jonah quite the time out isn't it jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days that's quite a time out isn't it and jonah does some serious praying in there in fact jonah hears god's voice again go up get up and go to nineveh and the whale vomits up and out and of course kids really love that image and that's really where most people stop reading we think the story is about obeying god's call or else and maybe it is but there's more god tells jonah to go to nineveh because they are in trouble they need to repent because if they don't things are only going to get worse now jonah is a prophet and that's what prophets do they go and they warn people and they urge them to turn back to god jonah reluctantly goes to nineveh and he tells them that in 40 days never will be overthrown unless they repent and you know what the people believed him they believed god it was the shortest and most powerful sermon ever it says in the text 120 000 people repented and when the king of nineveh heard about it he repented and he stripped his robe and put us on sackcloth and it even has this image of animals putting on sackcloth and repenting even the animals laugh out loud imagine that so from top to bottom from king to cattle the whole city of nineveh repents and you'd think jonah would be pleased he was successful his words were powerful and effective except that isn't what happened we expect jonah to be a hero and that he would be transformed by what god did that his reluctance would fade but jonah is not rejoicing in god's mercy he's not happy that his prophetic word was taken to heart he's not happy because he hated hated the and ninevites was kind of hoping that they would in fact experience everything they had coming to them he resists god's call he resists god's merciful action and he just keeps on resisting jonah has something in him that continually holds him back jonah doesn't want to go to nineveh not now and not ever why well nineveh was a city on the eastern bank of the tigris river in assyria jonah and his readers would have most likely had an intense distrust and maybe even hatred for the assyrians because in the 18th when the 8th excuse me the 8th and 7th centuries of bc the syrians plundered and pummeled palestine they looted and burned its cities and deported its inhabitants in 772 and 721 bc the northern kingdom of israel passed out of existence as a result of the assyrian conquest and sending jonathan and eva would have been like sending an african-american to preach to the georgia to preach to the klu klux klan think about that and so of course jonah says no no no not a chance send me anywhere else god but i'm not going to those people i'm not going to listen to those people i'm not going to forgive those people and truth be told jonah is a nationalist he's a zionist who will fight to the death for israel he will march and protest and save the golan heights and the west bank and the gaza strip and because he believes that israel is the chosen people and that the gentiles especially the ones in nineveh well they can just go to well you nowhere but jonah believes that they deserve every bad thing that will come to them and maybe even more now listen i'm not saying every jew was or is like this far from it peter and paul in the new testament were jews thoroughly jews that to realize that god had called them to bring good news of god's mercy and love to gentiles but not jonah jonah would never do that something in jonah held him back now we might be tempted to write jonah off as just another extremists who is being held back by his hate and we've seen that but before we get too comfortable seeing and seeing another scapegoat let's be honest life is complicated we know that we are called to love our neighbors and we know that we're called to love them all of them but let's face it the reason we talk about uncommon love is that sadly we too have our enemies and it is uncommon for people to love their enemies even today it seems to go against our grain and our sensibilities we love people freely who love us and who respect us and who treat us with respect and love but loving people who have wished us dead oh boy that's harder we all have our nine of us so let's not be too hard on jonah because we easily forget that jesus called us to love our enemies and we know jesus told us to love our enemies but it's so easy much easier to say than to do we too forget that mark twain quoting abraham lincoln once said the only safe and sure way to destroy your enemy is to make him your friend and like jonah we resist that sometimes take it from me i find it really hard to pick up the phone and actually talk to someone i know who's really mad at me or who has really hurt me it's just plain hard and i don't know about you but i resist it sometimes even though i know it's wrong even though i hear god's call to get up and go to my nineveh it's easier to hide and hope things will get better on their own to distract myself with other things to dodge to ghost now to be sure jonah isn't out to kill minivites he just wants to avoid them all together they've destroyed his family and most of us wouldn't blame him for playing duck and cover with god because we might be tempted to do the same thing like jonah we long to be both judge and jury when it comes to deciding who should be offered mercy and forgiveness and those who shouldn't in our minds people we are convinced are beyond help and so i don't know about you but i can relate to jonah the stalker in the last part of the story which we hardly ever hear in sunday school god has forgiven nineveh and spared them and jonah sits under a broom tree at the edge of town at the edge of nineveh and he does what teenagers do when they haven't eaten enough or slept enough he sulks and he escapes the heat by sitting under a tree a broom tree and while he's sleeping a worm comes along and eats the tree and it dies it's kind of like a disney movie we can picture it in our heads now once again he is exposed to the scorching heat not only of the sun but of his anger and bitterness he looks around for someone to blame he's still doing that and he cries out to god asking to die because well after all this isn't over a top story and god points out to jonah that he has more mercy for a tree that he did not plant her water than he does for the people of nineveh 120 000 people who don't know right from wrong not to mention their animals he asked jonah how can i not have mercy on this great city and that's the end the story ends the mic drops silence god asks us the same question today how could we not show mercy god has shown mercy to us god calls us god provides protection when we get dumped into the sea of life in the midst of raging storms god keeps on calling us doesn't give up on us giving us another chance to respond and yet god still sends us to our nineveh hoping that we will tell the truth and love not in judgment or condemnation but with mercy justice and uncommon love that can bring the hardest people to their knees and their senses people like you and me look at nineveh when god speaks truth into us and into our neighbor's hearts the truth about god's love which is steeped in mercy and grace when we do that together we are close to the heart of god we can come together right there we can all draw together closer into the heart of god will we give our souls to this work if we do we'll surely be emancipated free to be who god hopes we will become amanda gorman is unforgettable isn't she she's our youngest poet laureate who spoke at the inauguration on wednesday as she read her poem a hill we climb it was beautifully delivered without anger or malice i heard god's call to get up and go to my nineveh when she said if we merge mercy with might and might with right then love becomes our legacy and changes our children's birthright so let us leave behind a country better than one we are left with every breath from my bronze pounded chest we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one we will rise from the gold-limbed hills of the west we will rise from the windswept northeast where our forefathers first realize revolution we will rise from the lake rim cities of the midwestern states we will rise from the sun baked south we will rebuild reconcile and recover in every known nook of our nation in every corner called our country our people diverse and beautiful will emerge battered and beautiful when day comes we step out of the shade aflame and unafraid the new dawn blooms as we free it for there is always light if only we're brave enough to see it if only we're brave enough to be it are we brave enough to be the light we need to see our way forward a new dawn blooms it is time to go to the people god has called us to love to give our souls to it loving with an uncommon love for the common good in christ's name amen i know that you probably feel like 2020 left you stuck at home quite often it's understandable but there's no doubt about the fact that the holy spirit has been on the move and hennepin's ministries have been adapting and trying to keep pace too the dignity center has continued to serve those experiencing instability the choir and the youth groups have moved to zoom to continue to stay in community with one another and worship has moved online for important ministry like this to continue we need your help if you haven't followed through on making a financial commitment for 2021. today is the day that you need to do it on january 31st at 11 30 we will have a church conference to agree upon a budget for the rest of the year that's why it's so important that if you're able and planning to be a part of supporting these ministries throughout the year that you take that step today you can go online to haumc.org realm and it will guide you through the process of using your app to make a pledge for the new year if you are interested in making a financial contribution today we are thankful for that as well and you can do that by following the instructions that are showing up on the screen right now thank you so much for your generosity and giving as you are able let our hearts not be hearted to those living on the margins there is a room at the table for everyone this is where it all begins this is how we're gathering there is room at the table for everyone [Music] let us [Music] there is [Music] is [Music] no matter who you are no matter where you're from there is a room [Music] there is a room at the table forever [Music] if we share come on [Music] oh [Music] there is this is [Music] business [Music] this [Music] [Music] everyone [Music] is god all jesus [Music] christmas beloved friends together now we have an opportunity to pray for the world for our world for god's world i know that in the last few weeks we have seen events that have wounded us that have made us weep and yet the gift of grace to us is that when we bring those wounds to god that god not only hears our prayers and gives us comfort for our wounds but god gives us strength to continue together and so i invite you perhaps to use your bodies in this moment to use your hands if you are thinking of someone or a particular thing you'd like to pray for to hold it in your hands maybe even to hold it to your heart and then you're invited to remember that god's heart churns and yearns with compassion for us all let us pray god of mercy and grace in a world that seems to have lost its way we come to you now not simply seeking answers but seeking strength and courage for the times in which we live and for the days that are ahead of us god we pray for courage to be the people you have called us to be people of justice people of peace but most of all people who love like you love all around us we see problems that appear to be intractable with no solutions and we struggle with questions that seem to have no answers but we know that the answer to those questions and the solution to those problems is not simply found in our own human capacity but it is found in your love your love that encompasses us enfolds us that never ends that always forgives that always hopes this is our hope that you would love us unconditionally and that we would know the assurance of that love so that even in our struggle we might feel your presence with us help us today give us patience and understanding with each other give our leaders strength to guide us through these uncertain times give us peace in our communities for those who are sick or hurting in any way we ask that you would bring them healing for those who struggle with the weight of addiction we pray that you would give them community so that they might continue to recover and find their way through that challenge for those who are victims of violence we ask for comfort and for those who even we see as perpetrators we ask that we might be inspired to draw the circle of love so wide that there would be no dichotomy between victims and perpetrators but that all would realize that they are one in your family of creation use us use this congregation this community to be a place of goodness a place of hope a place of love in the place of transformation help us to be your place where all would know that they are welcome and all would know that they are loved we ask this in the name of jesus the christ who is not only the prince of peace but who was your gift of love to a world in turmoil and we ask this using the words that jesus taught his disciples to pray saying our god who art in heaven hallowed be your name your kingdom come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil for yours is the kingdom the power and the glory forever amen [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] friends sometimes god calls us to do things or go places or love people even that are hard to love but we don't have to do this alone god is always with us and god will empower us to be the people god desires us to be and so this week as you go your way as you go into the world as you seek to love your neighbors and your family and people who are hard to love remember that the peace of christ is in you and that the holy spirit is always at work shaping you teaching you and guiding you so go into the world with hope to love with an uncommon love for the common good amen [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] you