Epiphany... number 2?

Have you ever had the sense of de ja vu? If you have seen the movie The Matrix, de ja vu happens when there is a glitch or a reset. Sometimes de ja vu feels like you are remembering something that hasn't happened yet, and when you experience something for the first time, it feels like the second. De ja vu is different from the Groundhog Dayscenario where you may feel caught in a time loop, doomed to repeat the same events over and over, but it is similar because you feel you have already lived this particular day, and now you do it again. I would be the first to confess that there are times, especially when there are multiple Sundays labeled as Feast Days, when planning for weekly worship can feel like the union of Groundhog Dayand De ja vu. How to make worship feel fresh and alive, when the theme is always the same?

For example, last week, as I was preparing for Epiphany of the Lord, I learned something interesting: The Feast of Epiphany of the Lord for a time was synonymous with The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, and it does make sense. At the beginning of Jesus public ministry, at his baptism, the heavens opened, the Spirit of God descended, and the Voice of the Lord was heard to say, "This is my son with whom I am well pleased." It was a revelation and epiphany of the manifestation. In a very real sense, everything I spoke of last week applies to this week. So, what now? 

Well, unlike last week, and the theme of which revolved more closely around the fulfillment of an old promise and the revelation thereof, this week is about action, the kinetic energy that has yet to be released, but is right on the verge. Jesus was acknowledged as God's son in dramatic fashion, but we each have been called by name as children of God. As Jesus changed the world, so too can we. If last week was the revelation of God's plan in Jesus, this week's epiphany is the sure knowledge that God is still at work in the world, bridging discord with compassion, binding unity and diversity, and demonstrating that love trumps hate in all forms. Our call to action is to help build the bridges, be unified and diverse, and love radically. 

These next few upcoming Sundays, until we reach Lent, are all the Sundays after Epiphany, but they each have a little bit of epiphany, revelation of the manifestation of God's plan, contained within the message. 

~Rev. Andrea Joy Holroyd