Mission one: I am gay and lov'n it!

Luke 4:14-21

        It's a shame homiletics is not a mainstay of ministry in many churches. That is: teach ministers how to preach! One thing I was taught was this advice: If you don't strike oil in the first 5 minutes, stop boring! It's a shame that sermons and homilies go virtually forgotten save for those few that really stand out and we remember for the rest of our lives.

         It is a wonderful feeling when you know the Spirit has moved you or was channeled through you to present a message from God. It is even better I suppose to hear a sermon that you can own and take in the message.

          Here Jesus reads as anyone normally would and finishes it off with that line that really grabbed the entire congregation: 'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ He got every one's attention, something they likely will never forget.

          There are a few messages I will never forget and messages that I received that I held until the time was right. Through all of my Catholic School education, courses, retreats and prayers I was being prepared for something that is quite difficult to fathom for a 'good Catholic boy'. That is uttering the words "I am gay". It gos against so much that the church teaches and society at large accepts. When I was able to say those three words all the messages of my past were there to support me. I knew I was loved and I knew I was a decent person.

           My fervent desire is that everyone in the gay community knows i their heart of hearts, in their mind and in their soul, in every fiber of their being, that they are loved and accepted as they are and that being gay is a true gift from God.  When we say aloud that we are gay we are proclaiming acceptance and embracing the person God created. This is something you will never forget and is a source of joy for your entire life.  First, it is accepting who God envisioned and made you as, a beloved gay person. Second, it is a base of what you need to express the love of God for yourself and others. How awesome!

          As Jesus said  'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’, we too are called to accept, embrace and revel in who we are, who we were created to be. 

Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
   because he has anointed me
     to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
   and recovery of sight to the blind,
     to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’
And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’