Wings of Power and Protection, with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski.

Wings of Power and Protection, with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski. Series: Beloved. Belonging. Delightful. A Spacious Christianity, First Presbyterian Church of Bend, Oregon. Scripture: Ruth 1-4.

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Keywords:

grief, loss, resilience, hope, faith, companionship, Ruth, Naomi, sacred story, healing, presence, lament, turning, love, suffering, journey, honesty, scripture, support, emotional healing, sacred companionship, transformation, pain, spiritual growth, trust, God’s presence, redemption, sacred grief, shared burdens, community, comfort, presbyterian, church, online worship, bend, oregon

Featuring:

Rev. Dr. Steven Koski, Rev. Sharon Edwards, Becca Ellis, Brave of Heart, Guests

Transcript

Whitney Higdon: 0:20

You. Welcome to worship At First Presbyterian we, at First Presbyterian, practice a spacious Christianity, which means no matter where you are in your faith journey, you belong and there is space for you at the table, there is space for your doubts and questions. We believe doubts and questions are a gift that invite us into deeper conversations and a more authentic faith. We believe diversity is a strength. Every story is sacred and everybody matters. We do our best to live the spacious and radical love of Jesus so that all might have a chance to flourish in this world. We are so glad to connect with you in this way. We would also love to worship with you in person if you're ever in the neighborhood on Sunday mornings at 830, or 10am and never hesitate to reach out to us to learn more about us or how we might support You. I hope you enjoy this worship service. Welcome you.

Sharon Edwards: 5:00

God, Wings of power and protection, Ruth, chapters one through four, Ruth looked around and found no one to help behind her, just the worn and familiar road back to her homeland before her, the unknown road to Naomi's homeland. Naomi, her mother in law, said to her, go back to your people and your gods, I have nothing to offer you, but Ruth was a woman of power and protection, belonging burned bright in her, and she would not leave her mother in law. Enough of that. Don't ask me to turn away from you. I belong with you, and you belong with me. Your people are my people, and your God is my God. I promise to stay with you no matter what. But Naomi just shook her head as they set off down the road before them, when they arrived in Naomi's Old Village, her former neighbors and friends crowded around in shock. What a joke to call me Naomi, that name means delight, and as you can see, I have none. And she told about the death of her husband and her sons. When I left you, I was full, but God made me empty. No husband, no sons, in our world, that leaves me helpless. God has left me alone. You're not alone. I'm right here. Ruth thought sadly as she stood beside Naomi and stared back at the curious crowd. They didn't like people from Moab, and it showed in the gawks and the whispers, foreigner, outsider, helpless. But the next morning, Ruth woke with determination. She went to the fields outside the town in search of food, belonging and blessing, and she found them in the field of Boaz, a man of power and protection, Boaz still remembered God's ways. He remembered to leave the corners of his fields unharvested, so that they would be available to the hungry and the helpless. I am hungry, but here is help, and I can be a helper. Ruth thought and She toiled all day gathering grain at the corners of Boaz field. Boaz arrived at the fields booming blessings to his workers and friends, and he spoke kindness and welcome to Ruth. Why are you being so kind to me? You know I'm an outsider, right? Boaz paused and then simply said, I've heard about the kindness you've shown Naomi, her people are now your people and her God is your God? Then Boaz boomed a blessing. May you find blessing and comfort under God's wings. Ruth arrived home that evening with her arms full of grain and her heart was full of promise, hearing her story. Naomi told Ruth Boaz is a close relative of mine. We are two women alone in the world, but he could help us belong again. Weeks upon weeks, weeks, Ruth returned to Boaz field and would arrive home in evening with gifts. Boaz did not want you to be empty, and neither do I. You're not empty, you're not helpless, you're not alone. Sometimes, the true and beautiful words we speak to others helps them to believe the true and beautiful words God has for them. Later, Ruth and Boaz would marry, and they built a home together, Ruth Naomi and Boaz, a place of belonging where God's ways were cherished and kept and their children and their children's children boomed blessing to others and spread their wings of comfort and shelter.

Steven: 9:16

The poet Mary Oliver carrying the weight of grief after the death of her beloved partner of over 40 years. Wrote, it's not the weight you carry, but how you carry it. I mean, every single one of us is carrying the weight of grief in some way, and the weight of the world right now feels overwhelming in so many ways. It's not the weight, but how we carry it. I mean, how can we learn to carry the weight, the weight of whatever grief, loss, stress, trauma we're carrying? How can we learn to carry that weight with grace, resilience we just. Heard a beautiful story about Ruth and Naomi that might actually help us carry the weight of our grief in a different way. Let me offer a little bit of background. The story begins with Naomi, who's married to Elimelech, and they live in Bethlehem. There's a severe drought and famine so So Naomi and Elimelech are forced to move across the river to Moab which is modern day Jordan. They have two sons, Killian and Milan. Now this is a Jewish family, but both sons marry Moabites, Orpah and Ruth. Now Moabites were the despised enemy of the Israelites, Naomi and Elimelech, they welcomed, they welcomed Orpah and Ruth as family, even though they have a different ethnicity and religion and they're actually supposed to be the enemy, which really says a lot about their character. And just as things began begin to settle, everything changes. Everything changes in an instant. Have you noticed life is like that? The one thing that is constant in life is change and loss. Elimelech dies, then both sons die. I mean incomprehensible tragedy, unspeakable grief. Naomi, this, this Jewish woman and her two Moabite daughter in laws are now bound together in heartbreak and grief, so Naomi decides to return home, you know, hoping her extended family in Bethlehem might might care for her. She tries to convince her daughter in laws to stay in Moab, knowing they have a far better chance with their own people in their own land. Now, Orpah listens to Naomi and she returns to her family. Ruth refuses to leave Naomi, and she becomes Naomi's sacred companion on the journey through the shadows of grief. Let me just read a few verses from chapter one of the book of Ruth. Naomi said to Orpah and Ruth, it is more bitter for me than for you, because God's hand has turned against me at this. They wept out loud together. Then Orpah kissed her mother in law, goodbye, but Ruth clung to her look. Said, naobi, your sister in law is going back to her people and her Gods go back with her. Ruth replied, Don't, don't urge me to leave you or to turn my back from you. Where you go, I will go, where you stay? I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my god. Naomi realized Ruth was determined to go with her, so the two women went on together until they came to Bethlehem. You know, it's really interesting that that the verb turn is used repeatedly throughout the book of Ruth, almost as a writing device to keep the movement of the story going. So I wonder if the key to carrying the weight, carrying the weight of our own grief is to keep turning. There are actually three turns, three turns that we see in the story that might help us carry whatever weight, weight we're carrying, maybe with a little more resilience and grace. The first turn we notice is to turn towards our pain. Naomi says to Orpah and Ruth, God's hand is turned against me, and then it says the three of them wept. Out Loud. Now we live in a culture. We live in a culture that wants to turn away from pain, that wants to deny our pain, minimize our pain, numb our pain, that wants to project our pain onto others, that always wants us to pretend, you know, have. Everything's okay. Ancient wisdom says the path to healing is to turn toward your pain. Move closer, lean into your pain. Richard Rohr reminds us that if we don't find a way to to face and transform our pain. We will just keep transmitting our pain to those around us, or we will turn it against ourselves, or both. Think of grief, grief, which we all experience, grief is actually an energy field that wants to move through us. You know, the way that that a storm moves across the summer sky. You know, not just once, but in waves. But grief can't actually move unless we give ourselves permission to grieve. Otherwise, grief likes, likes to settle into our bones and can actually cause us to sink into despair. Sometimes, sometimes, the healing begins when we turn toward our pain, when we give ourselves permission for the tears to flow. Healing begins with honesty. You know, a healthy spirituality is actually a really honest spirituality. Where are the spaces where you can be brutally honest? Naomi turned toward her pain and honestly expressed her sense of forsakenness, and Ruth Orpah wept aloud with her, which brings me to the second turning in the story. You know, the turning that can help us carry the weight of our grief, and that is turned toward one another. You know, initially, Naomi tries to convince Orpah and Ruth to leave her. We do that. Have you noticed we do that? Sometimes, in our grief, in our pain and our suffering, we turn away. We try to convince ourselves, and we try to convince others. You know, we're okay. We don't need anyone, friends, no one, no one can do this journey called life alone. We need each other. Asking for help is not weakness. It's actually a desire to be strong. Our strength is actually found in each other. Perhaps the most beautiful words in the entire Bible are spoken by Ruth to Naomi, where you go, I will go, the book of Ruth. Is the first book of the Bible where God doesn't actually speak. God doesn't actually show up in the entire book. I think this is because the book of Ruth is letting us know that God's presence shows up through our presence when we show up when we become sacred companions to one another on the journey. The weight of the grief that we carry is is lessened when we don't have to carry that weight alone. We carry the weight of our grief with resilience and grace when we toward, turn toward our pain, when we turn toward one another, and finally, when we turn toward hope. You know, I often tell people who experience. Is a significant loss or or trauma that you will never get over it, and you shouldn't get over it as if, as if loss is something to get over, like a bad case of the flu, the losses we experience, the pain we experience, are actually part of our sacred story, and will always be part of our sacred story. But our faith tells us it's not the whole story or the end of the story. The book of Ruth starts in tragedy, unspeakable tragedy and grief. Naomi and Ruth turn towards their pain. They carry the weight of their grief together. The book ends with Ruth a Moabite marrying a Jewish man named Boaz. They have a son whose name is Obed. Naomi finds healing for her grief in being a grandmother Obed, marries and has a son whose name is Jesse. Jesse marries and has a son whose name is David. David becomes a king, that means Ruth. Ruth became the great grandmother of King David. That means Ruth, who carried the weight of tragedy and grief with Naomi, was the many times great grandmother of another child of Bethlehem, whose name was Jesus. Just when you think the grief you carry is the whole story, the end of the story, turn the page. Turn toward hope, turn towards one another, grab someone's hand, keep walking through the valley of the shadows. Just keep walking. Just keep walking. Because you just don't know where the road will lead. It's not the weight, it's how you carry it, and as we carry our grief together Friends, there is a love that carries us. And I offer this prayer, holy one, the weight we carry in this life, at times can feel absolutely overwhelming as we take a moment to turn towards our pain, remind us that we're not alone. Remind us that we are we are never alone. As we give ourselves permission for tears to flow. Remind us that our tears are sacred, and you weep with us as we turn towards the pain and suffering in this world. Remind us there is a light that no amount of suffering can extinguish. Help us to know how we can turn toward one another, to be the presence of Love where it's needed the most, even now show us, show us ways, how we can show up, show up for one another, helping one another carry life's weight, and even when things feel bleak, turn our face toward hope. Remind us that love wins. Love always wins, and if love isn't winning, it just means the story isn't over, and as we carry life's weight together. Together remind us there's always a love that carries us. Amen. Friends, remember it's not the weight, but how you carry it. And remember, there is a love. There is a love that is always carrying you go into peace and the love of Christ, and may you show up for others in such a way that it might bring a little peace to them. Amen.

Whitney Higdon: 28:37

Thank you so much for joining us, and we hope you enjoyed this worship service, if you would like to make a donation helping make these broadcasts possible or support the many ways, first, Presbyterian seeks to serve our community, you can make a financial gift online@bendfp.org every week, we hear from someone thanking us for the gift of these broadcasts and What a difference they make your support makes that possible. Our church is committed to reach beyond our walls, bringing hope where there is despair and love where it is needed the most. Your generous support helps us to be generous in love. Go to our website, bend fp.org, and click on the link. Give online. Your support is really appreciated and makes a difference in people's lives. Thanks again. I hope to see you next week. You