EasternPriest
July 17th, 2001, 12:32 AM
From my sermon files for your consideration.......
BURNING OUR INCENSE
“Bless God, utter His praise before all the living for the favor He has shown you. Proclaim before all people the deeds of God as they deserve and never tire of giving him thanks.” (Tobit 12:6)
July has come and we begin the second half of the year. The first six months of the new millennium have already passed, and before you know it another year will be upon us. What have we accomplished in the last six months? Are we off to a good start, using the opportunities we are presented to grow? Are we still stuck in a rut from last year, trying to get going, but can’t?
We have each been blessed in a variety of ways. What are our blessings? Can we list these blessings, or are we so wrapped up in day to day living that we don’t pause to consider them? Many people live life so fast that there isn’t time to pause and consider blessings and gratitude. Do we take the time to pause and consider all that we are blessed with? If not, why not? Saying that we do not have the time is an excuse. Admitting that we often don’t take the time would be more honest. If we do not take the time to count our blessings, how can we truly be grateful for them? If we are not truly grateful for what we have been given, how can we expect to receive more? In order to learn and grow we need to take time to count our blessings so that we can rightly use them to the Glory of God.
In the Gospel of Luke we are told of the High Priest Zechariah and his appointed time to burn incense. Burning incense at the Ark of the Covenant was a sacred responsibility. Each of the priests was assigned a specific time for the burning of incense, and they were not allowed to enter the Holy of Holies at any other time. When a Temple Priest entered the Holy of Holies to burn incense, the faithful in the community gathered around the perimeter of the Temple to pray. For that period of time, everyone’s focus was on the significance of the sacred task at hand.
Was it the Temple Priest that made the burning of incense sacred? Yes, but it was much more than that. It was the focused prayers and intentions of all gathered that consecrated the actions of the Priest. It was a sense of community that united the intentions of the people and magnified the power of their prayers and thanksgiving to God. Without the support of the community, incense would still have been burned, but it never would have achieved the same level of sacred significance.
The same is true today during any group meeting. The leaders represent us and organize the meeting, but we are all co-leaders. We each contribute to, or detract from, the meeting by our intent and attitude. Lending our supportive intent makes what is shared during the meeting more powerful and more personally meaningful.
The same is also true regarding our country, whose birthday we celebrate this week. As concerned citizens, we each have specific roles to fill; community member, politician, voter, wage earner, retiree, volunteer. There is a time and place for everyone to be involved, for the good of all concerned.
We each have a time when it is our turn to burn incense. There are moments in our lives when we are called upon to lead, and everyone around us focuses their prayers and energies on our efforts. We each have that which is ours alone to do. Some are called to roles that are very visible. Others are called to tasks that are more obscure, but are no less important. What is important is how you respond to the task. It starts with humility.
Other times, it is our responsibility to lend support to the person whose turn it is to burn incense, and our loving support is no less important. All of these actions help to build the community of faith and help us grow together, and growing together is one way we can show gratitude to God for the many blessings in our lives.
BURNING OUR INCENSE
“Bless God, utter His praise before all the living for the favor He has shown you. Proclaim before all people the deeds of God as they deserve and never tire of giving him thanks.” (Tobit 12:6)
July has come and we begin the second half of the year. The first six months of the new millennium have already passed, and before you know it another year will be upon us. What have we accomplished in the last six months? Are we off to a good start, using the opportunities we are presented to grow? Are we still stuck in a rut from last year, trying to get going, but can’t?
We have each been blessed in a variety of ways. What are our blessings? Can we list these blessings, or are we so wrapped up in day to day living that we don’t pause to consider them? Many people live life so fast that there isn’t time to pause and consider blessings and gratitude. Do we take the time to pause and consider all that we are blessed with? If not, why not? Saying that we do not have the time is an excuse. Admitting that we often don’t take the time would be more honest. If we do not take the time to count our blessings, how can we truly be grateful for them? If we are not truly grateful for what we have been given, how can we expect to receive more? In order to learn and grow we need to take time to count our blessings so that we can rightly use them to the Glory of God.
In the Gospel of Luke we are told of the High Priest Zechariah and his appointed time to burn incense. Burning incense at the Ark of the Covenant was a sacred responsibility. Each of the priests was assigned a specific time for the burning of incense, and they were not allowed to enter the Holy of Holies at any other time. When a Temple Priest entered the Holy of Holies to burn incense, the faithful in the community gathered around the perimeter of the Temple to pray. For that period of time, everyone’s focus was on the significance of the sacred task at hand.
Was it the Temple Priest that made the burning of incense sacred? Yes, but it was much more than that. It was the focused prayers and intentions of all gathered that consecrated the actions of the Priest. It was a sense of community that united the intentions of the people and magnified the power of their prayers and thanksgiving to God. Without the support of the community, incense would still have been burned, but it never would have achieved the same level of sacred significance.
The same is true today during any group meeting. The leaders represent us and organize the meeting, but we are all co-leaders. We each contribute to, or detract from, the meeting by our intent and attitude. Lending our supportive intent makes what is shared during the meeting more powerful and more personally meaningful.
The same is also true regarding our country, whose birthday we celebrate this week. As concerned citizens, we each have specific roles to fill; community member, politician, voter, wage earner, retiree, volunteer. There is a time and place for everyone to be involved, for the good of all concerned.
We each have a time when it is our turn to burn incense. There are moments in our lives when we are called upon to lead, and everyone around us focuses their prayers and energies on our efforts. We each have that which is ours alone to do. Some are called to roles that are very visible. Others are called to tasks that are more obscure, but are no less important. What is important is how you respond to the task. It starts with humility.
Other times, it is our responsibility to lend support to the person whose turn it is to burn incense, and our loving support is no less important. All of these actions help to build the community of faith and help us grow together, and growing together is one way we can show gratitude to God for the many blessings in our lives.