Never Alone

May my words be in the name of the living God, Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer. Amen

Here in the UK there was a lot of fuss recently about baby Prince George’s birth then baptism. He is 3^rd in line to the throne and will maybe be King one day.

I was having a chat to a mate this weekend as she had recently been at an event that the Queen was present at. They were told to curtsey or bow as she went past. Because my friend hadn’t practiced this, she ended up not doing it as the moment went quickly. 

When I had to be in a line to meet the Queen we were told the same thing. Being the Rebel Rev that I am I did nothing because she is just another human being and I have trouble “subjecting” myself to anyone.

Then I get the short straw and have to preach for Christ the King again as Wendy likes to be away at this time of year. How will I bring something new to my thinking about all this when I don’t like all that triumphalist stuff?

Christ the King was an invention of Pope Pius XI who got a bit worried about all the secularism in the 1920’s and wanted to celebrate the reign of Christ. It’s not been around that long then in the churches terms. We have an even more secular society now so maybe the Pope put out the wrong image.

Of course as well as being Christ the King it’s stir up Sunday when you lot that love the kitchen rather than see it as a route to the garden, traditionally would stir up your Christmas puddings.

Well I’m good at stirring but in a different sense so let’s see what I can stir in today’s readings.

Jeremiah gives us this image of God

⁴I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them,

and they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed,

nor shall any be missing, says the LORD.

That’s a very different view and not too Kingly. Then this lovely bit of Colossians:

Brothers and sisters:

¹¹May you be made strong

with all the strength that comes from his glorious power,

and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience,

¹²while joyfully giving thanks to the Father,

who has enabled you to share

in the inheritance of the saints in the light.

¹³He has rescued us from the power of darkness

I did stop before we have talk of the Kingdom in that reading because I want us to hear that we all have a share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. You know I love imagery about light and dark and sometimes we have to get comfortable in being in the gentle light of the moon because we can’t always be in the bright light of the sun but as long as we never let the darkness totally overwhelm us. We can be made strong so that like Janet Morley’s beautiful prayer we can say that in the darkness we were not lost.

Then we have the gospel which gives us the broken Jesus still reaching out from the cross to the thieves around him. I can really identify with this conversation with the one geezer saying to the other “leave him alone. We’ve done wrong, he ain’t” When I was a kid I was always being punished and being the intelligent child I was I decided that if I was going to get into trouble anyway, I might as well do something to deserve it. I think that is fantastic logic for a child. So I used to come in late or whatever bit of defiance I could think of on that day and as I got the wallop I would smile inside because it didn’t hurt as much as getting whacked for doing nothing.

So getting back to our readings we have this situation where Jesus says to the thief “I will see you in paradise soon” I wonder if the other thief had a change of heart seeing this meaningful exchange?

This exchange made me think about this business of who we might meet in heaven. It seems like there will be thieves, and all the other misfits that Jesus hung out with and that made me think that if we don’t like the people on earth we aint gonna like heaven much because the people that give us the ‘ump will be there too.

So we are going to have to do something about this business of loving one another and getting alongside each other here on earth and working on this love stuff. 

Well how does all that link with today’s reading. One of the past Vicars at St Mark’s loved the following hymn and always made us sing it every Easter. It was an awful tune but I think the words are powerful:

Therefore he who shows us God

Helpless hangs upon the tree;

And the nail and crown of thorns

Tell of what God’s love must be.

Here is God: no monarch he,

Throned in easy state to reign;

Here is God, whose arms of love

Aching, spent, the world sustain.   

It’s that last bit that gets me every time

Here is God: no monarch he,

Throned in easy state to reign;

Here is God, whose arms of love

Aching, spent, the world sustain.   

That’s the king I can identify with, the one who was prepared to enter every human struggle and who deeply understands our sufferings and what does he do he stretched out those arms of love. He doesn’t sit austere on a throne and make people tremble before him but lovingly reaches out to us in the darkness and is aching for us to say “here I am” and to reach the rest of the way into those arms.

How many times have you longed to be in some ones arms but kept the stiff upper lip and didn’t let go? I am a professional collector of tears. It is one of my gifts and is a real privilege that people invite me into their fears and anxieties and hurts and shattered dreams. I will open my arms to hug and embrace anyone and I never want that to change.

I’m not always very good at letting my tears flow and I am very fortunate that when I do I can receive a hug and let people come close. In that way my friends are bringing some light in the darkness and some of God’s love to wrap around me. If I can do it as someone who was once a little toughy and a street urchin, then so can you. Please open your hearts, minds and arms to one another. Get to know and love the people around you so that when you get to heaven you can enjoy the company.

I recently did a memorial service at the school. I finished with this song by Lady Antebellum, I will put the words on the screen and I’d like you to just sit and be still and listen and as your thoughts drift remember those aching arms of the king of love outstretched to you and as the song says remember you are never alone.

May the angels protect you
Trouble neglect you
And heaven accept you when it's time to go home
May you always have plenty
Your glass never empty
Know in your belly
You're never alone

May your tears come from laughing
You find friends worth having
With every year passing
They mean more than gold
May you win but stay humble
Smile more than grumble
And know when you stumble
You're never alone

Never alone
Never alone
I'll be in every beat of your heart
When you face the unknown
Wherever you fly
This isn't goodbye
My love will follow you stay with you
Baby you're never alone

Well, I have to be honest
As much as I want it
I'm not gonna promise the cold winds won't blow
So when hard times have found you
And your fear surround you
Wrap my love around you
You're never alone

Never alone
Never alone
I'll be in every beat of your heart
When you face the unknown
Wherever you fly
This isn't goodbye
My love will follow you stay with you
Baby you're never alone

May the angels protect you
Trouble neglect you
And heaven accept you when it's time to go home
And when hard times have found you
And your fear surround you
Wrap my love around you
You're never alone

Never alone
Never alone
I'll be in every beat of your heart
When you face the unknown
Wherever you fly
This isn't goodbye
My love will follow you stay with you
Baby you're never alone
My love will follow you stay with you
Baby you're never alone