The sermon title should be "Not Quite Finished," but I had already published it in the newsletter so I did not change it. The reason it should be "finished" instead of done is that I focused on Christ's comment from the cross, "It is finished" during our Maundy Thursday/Tenebrae service last night. The service finished with voices from the pews echoing Jesus' words.
I will begin Easter's sermon by taking us back to those words. Then, I will move forward with the idea that God is not quite "done" or "finished" when Christ is crucified. Resurrection follows. part of the sermon will be pointing toward our calling as people who join God in the unfinished business.
As some of you may know, my sister died yesterday (actually Wednesday night on the west coast) after a fourteen-year struggle with cancer. I know that as I stand up to preach the resurrection, it will be foremost on my mind. I am prayerful that I can figure out a way to acknowledge my own "stuff" without making the sermon about my "stuff." Fortunately, I had the framework of the sermon done, so I have that to cling to as I finish my preparation, but I also am hearing resurrection in a very personal way. Not private, like it is only for me, but personal in that it matters this year in a way that it has not always.
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