In the Apostles’ Creed, we affirm the mystery of the Communion of Saints. Without denying the only too real reality of death, we affirm a greater reality. Those we love and who love us are not through with us. And we are not through with them. And most importantly God is never through with us.

Central to our following Jesus and serving others is the mystery of the Word of God – intelligence, love, power – becoming flesh/skin/alive in Jesus.

Sometimes the flesh/presence of Jesus, by grace and mystery, shows up in our words. For me, I hear an echo of those unwritten words of Jesus, John refers to, in such writers as Frederick Buechner.

The sweep of the Judeo-Christian faith is that God is honored not by correctness but by compassion…by inclusion not exclusion. The God we know in Jesus cares cosmically more than we do about Muslims, Buddhists, atheists, and all the ‘ims…ists…ians’ we can come up with.

With a job or volunteer service, can you imagine doing this thing you enjoy in some form that helps others with their lives…that relieves hurt, increases beauty, builds up/protects the earth?

According to Luke, struggling Jesus found strength when he prayed. Whatever else prayer may or may not change, it’s said, praying changes the one who prays. And though Hoffman’s picture has blessed my life, Luke’s Jesus helps hold me together and strengthens me, when I am scared, which I often am more than I like to admit to you or myself.

Paul’s Romans 8 affirmation that ‘God works for good in what happens...’ does not say that God makes everything happen in some lockstep, predetermined world. It says the great providence-provider is with us as we use the freedom, compassion, and creativity with which we are graced.

More often, resurrection power is doing what we can do for one another. Sooner or later we realize that we can actually go on, stammering and stumbling perhaps, by strength beyond our own. Resurrecting and amazing grace.

Those who have endured hearing me across the years may recall a working definition of saints I use. ‘A saint is an imperfect person through whom we experience a bit of God’s love.’ These people with their own foibles have loved us, put up with us, been patient with us, saved our bacon, given us yet another chance, ran interference for us and God know what else...usually not even recognized by us until in our rear view mirror years down the road. Some of them we will name in our hearts today.

In a number of United Methodist Churches today, new pastors will be in their new pulpits. Former pastors have moved to new appointments or retirement. Congregation members will be in a special spot between pastors past and new pastor present. It’s bitter-sweetery all around.

Guzman surveys how hard it is for people who disagree just to talk with each other in our high-emotion polarized times. We ‘other-ize’ people with whom we disagree – they are just not like us. We question their faith, patriotism, sense and sanity. Perhaps, a good place to start is to allow ourselves to try to understand how the ‘others’ came to see things the way they do.