“Not for Profit: ‘God’s Gift’ Becomes Community’s Gain”

Renewable-energy advocates often say we must use the gift of natural resources – wind and sun. St. Croix Reformed Church took the gift idea to the ultimate, using the wind to give a gift to local students.

Pictured right: Alfredo Andres assistant principal Anna Marie Gordon, left, and secretary Sherika Milligan, with the donated copier. (Photo provided by the Rev. Rod Koopmans)

When in 2012 the church installed a wind turbine with funding from the V.I. Energy Office, it made a commitment to use the savings for the island’s benefit. After a year of operation and accumulation of savings, the church reached out this fall to the nearby Alfredo Andrews Elementary School to determine its needs and how the church could assist.

Principal Joan A. Claxton responded that the school copy machine had recently failed and a replacement was needed. The church purchased, with savings from its Water and Power bill, a used machine and had it serviced by Adan Business Machines, then delivered it to the school.

“Ms. Claxton and I are so thrilled and grateful for the donation of the copier,” Gordon says. “This was truly a need that the Reformed Church responded to.”

The church’s 10-kilowatt turbine is hooked into WAPA through the net metering program designed by the Energy Office.

So far, the Reformed Church is the only institution that has turned its savings into a method of giving directly back to the community. Several organizations that net meter have expressed an interest in giving the excess energy they produce to non-profits. However the logistics and the economics do not appear to work for the power company.

For more information about the Turbine and its current output,  go to https://stcroixreformed.org/our-wind-turbine/

Energy Office spokesperson Don Buchanan said the American Recovery and Reinvestment grant for the turbine was $50,000 and the church contributed $16,500 to the project. He said the turbine will pay for itself in eight years.

“The church is not waiting for the turbine to pay for itself,” Buchanan said. “It’s putting the savings back into the community right now. The church is doing exactly what it said it would do in its grant application and we are very happy about that.”

“We will, from time to time, be making additional donations,” Koopmans said.

Here are some photos from recent events at the church…

Xmas Eve 2013

Live Nativity 2013

Wow…what a special concert we had on January 12th!
Be sure to rent the movie “The Red Violin” to see the story behind Elizabeth’s Stradivarius

Claire and Jeff Cabrera tied the knot in Texas and send their best.

“Three sixty-four; Three sixty-four; Utah; Topeka; Set; Hike; Hike; Hike!!” What does all of that mean? As one who spent most of his time on the basketball court or baseball diamond, I never learned about some of the “codes” for football. But listen to any broadcast of a football game and you will hear the quarterback bark out signals much like those above. Rest assured, while I might be confused, the football team is not. They understand what is being said. They have been taught the game plan.

This Sunday we will “kick-off” confirmation class for the young adults in our congregation. As part of the Reformed tradition, we are all about “faith seeking understanding” and that is the journey these young people are embarking on . . . a journey of discovery and understanding. For the next 23 weeks, they will explore, wrestle, uncover, challenge and be challenged. They will look at there faith from all angles as they seek to put together their own personal “statement of faith”.

Please keep them in your prayers. Are you ready? Down; Set; Hike! See you Sunday!

“Humble Pie” – October 27, 2013

Romans 3:19-28
Luke 18:9-14

“Let the words of my mouth . . . “

(Knock on the pulpit). It’s a dark and stormy night. The date is October 31st . All Hallows Eve. The year is 1517. As we look off in the distance, we see the light coming from a solitary lantern. Closer and closer and closer it comes. Weaving its way from house to house, from tree to tree, until finally it comes to rest at the doors of the church. There, we see the solitary figure, their face shielded from view by their cloak. They quickly place the lantern on the ground, grab a hammer and some papers, and start nailing. Bang. Bang. Bang. Quickly, they pick up the lantern and retreat the way they came. Who was this? Why all the secrecy? What did they so clandestinely nail to the Church doors?
Fast forward to today and we know that this person was none other than Martin Luther and what he nailed to the doors of Castle Church in Wittenburg, Germany was his infamous 95 theses. Truth be told, it was probably not a dark and stormy night but rather the middle of the day. The nailing to the doors was done with no more fanfare than you or I thumb tacking a flyer to the community bulletin board at Beeston Hill fitness, inviting everyone to attend Jazz Vespers next Sunday. The door was like a community bulletin board and what Luther wanted was to invite the powers that be to a theological debate.
Standing on the shoulders of reformers who came before him, Luther wanted to engage discussion with those in power so as to “reform” what he saw as abuses going on in the church. He was not interested in starting his own breakaway church. He just wanted to fix what was wrong with the current one, or at least have some good discussion about it. Well, the church at the time was not interested. Luther was excommunicated.
Not to be discouraged, with the power of the newly invented printing press, Luther began to write. And just like our internet blogs and posts that can soon take a life of their own, Luther’s writings did the same. They went viral! The rest we can say, “is history”. So today, WE stand on the shoulders of men and women who constantly looked to reform what were seen as abuses within church and society. And while I am happy to be on this side of the reformation; happy with the Reformed mantra of scripture alone, faith alone, and grace alone; I am saddened by the all the divisions.
Luther may not have intended to start the Lutheran Church, but it happened. As did the Presbyterian, Reformed, Baptist, and so on. And it continues to grow today. Just Google ‘Christian denominations’ and you will see that there are somewhere in the neighborhood of 40,000. Now I am all about diversity, but it seems that every time differences arise, one group will shun the other; leave; and start a new faction. Maybe there is something hard wired in our DNA as human beings, but we sure like to take sides. Whether it is catholic verses protestant; democratic verses republican; tea party verses progressive; National league verse American, we like to take sides; differentiate ourselves; try to get others to join us; and put God on our side and our side alone. It’s tempting with today’s parable too.
As we read in today’s scripture lesson, we have a Pharisee and Tax Collector, both going up to the temple to pray. Now I am getting pretty used to these characters from Luke so my mind quickly fills in the scene. The Pharisee is going to act all righteous and pompous; while the tax collector will be more down to earth, more like me. Right? But then I have to remember that this is a parable and a parable is meant to shock us a little, to give us a bit of a jolt, to make us look at things from a different perspective. It has been said of parables, “they are like fishing lures with bright colors and decorated feathers, with a sharp barb on the end”! But by becoming too familiar with it, I’m like the sneaky fish who always snatches the worm from the hook without ever getting caught. So let’s reframe this parable a bit to get our ears to hear it like those from the 1st century.
The Pharisee’s were all about observing the law as laid out by Moses in the Torah, but they were also about trying to make Torah observance available to all. Today, if we were to put a label on it, we might call them progressive or even evangelical. He does what is expected. He fasts, tithes, goes to the temple. So instead of a Pharisee, let’s substitute someone who we think of, someone who is a great example of a follower and doer of the teachings of Christ. How about Mother Teresa?
Now for the tax collector. These guy’s, and I am sure they were all guys, were not cut from your typical IRS agent mold. No, these guys would have been ruthless. They would have been members of the local community who were working for the oppressor state of Rome. They would be assigned to gather the required tax, keep a little cut for themselves, and return the rest to Rome. How they would gather this tax was in there discretion. I’m sure that some used beatings or the fear of beatings to get the required tax from some people. Unscrupulous and dishonest would have been the order of the day. They were NOT liked. So instead of a tax collector, how about Osama Bin Laden (*see sermon note).
“Two people went up to the temple to pray, one was a Pharisee: Mother Teresa and the other at tax collector: Osama Bin Laden”. Mother Teresa prays, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, or even like this terrorist. I fast twice a week, I help the poor in places no one wants to go’. Osama Bin Laden, standing far off and not even looking up to heaven , beats his breast and says, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner’. I tell you, this man went down to his home made right with God rather than Mother Teresa, for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted”.
Let that register for a second. Can you feel the shock factor a bit more with those characters? Feel the challenge to our preconceived notions? As I hear the story, I’m pulling for Mother Teresa. Certainly, she will be justified in her prayer. Just listen to her litany of achievements. How can she NOT be made right with God? But it’s not her, its Osama Bin Laden, the ruthless terrorist who is justified . . . how can this be? What kind of lesson is this parable trying to teach us?
It appears that humility is a virtue that is being rewarded (just keep on eating that humble pie). And while that is hard to argue with, to say that the moral of this parable is simple “be humble” is difficult. Humility is this kind of two-edged sword. First, humility can keep us from putting our best foot forward. I have struggled with this in the past. Using this scripture as my example, I have forced myself to be humble, almost to the point where it began to impact my own self-esteem and confidence. “Don’t want to put myself out there because then I won’t be humble”. But does not Scripture also tell us, “don’t put your light under a basket . . . let is shine for all to see”. Failing to acknowledge and use the wonderful gifts that God has given us is not humility, it’s a sin.
Second, humility can lead us into a trap. Can you see it in this parable? Once I start focusing on being humble, not prideful, not puffing up my own feathers, then I risk becoming prideful in my accomplishment that I am being humble and not prideful. Our prayer becomes “thank you that I am not like this Pharisee”. So, if humility is not the main message of the parable, what is it? When the Pharisee, or in our case Mother Teresa, began to pray, they listed their litany of achievements. As the parable is first unfolding, I find myself agreeing. Are they not just stating the obvious? As a Christian, can’t I be thankful that I am not like a terrorist? Can’t I be thankful that I am not like that evil person over there or that deceitful person over there? It’s those divisions again. The “who is in my camp and who is out” that we so love to do. We so want to be on the winning team. Winners and losers. It is an easy trap to fall into.
I remember when the charismatic movement blew through our town in Oklahoma. Many churches and ours in particular got caught up in what was called “spiritual renewal”. The spirit was moving again, just like at Pentecost. Liturgies began to change. New music and patterns of worship began to evolve. All that was fine, but attitudes began to change too. All of a sudden, if YOUR church was not “spirit-filled”, in the way that “I” define it, then you are just missing the boat. Can you hear it? “God, I thank you that we are not like those Baptists and Methodists and Catholics down the street”. It’s the Pharisee’s prayer. We become the judge and not God. We decide who is in or out.
Who do WE think is righteous? They can’t be righteous, look at what “I” am doing. I did this. I do that. There is a lot of “I” in there and not a lot of “God”. That is the point this parable is trying to drive home. It is not about us, it is about God. That is the point that Luther and other reformers were trying to make as well. It is only by God’s grace and mercy that we brought into wholeness . . . that’s it . . . nothing that we have done or will do can get is justified or right before God. Faith alone and Grace alone. What this parable wants us to realize is that it is ALL ABOUT GOD!
This parable, in fact, the crux of the whole Reformation, was an attempt to shift our attention away from ourselves and back to God. To shift the focus away from our own piety our own works our own successes, and back on to the Grace of God. To remind us that any status we claim, comes from God alone; a God who delights in dining with tax collectors and turning our preconceived notions upside down.
To set our focus again on the one who “in the beginning created the heavens and the earth”. The one to whom Moses and the Israelites sang, “Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in splendor, doing wonders? ”Who David proclaims, “is our shepherd, we shall not want”. The one Isaiah proclaims, “As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you”. Who John tells us loved us so much, that he sent his only son; God incarnate; to live and to die so that we might live! Who Paul proclaims that though the power of the Holy Spirit, “we were all baptized into one body, so that there is now neither Jew nor Gentiles, slave or free, but we are all one in Christ”.
With this focus, perhaps we can look at our neighbor, both those we agree with and especially those we don’t, not with judgment but with a more generous eye and recognize a fellow forgiven sinner for whom Christ died.

Thanks be to God!

Let us pray: God, we thank you for your Word which goes before us to lead, to guide, and to illumine our path. Help us to be doer’s of your Word and not just hearers. In Christ Name, Amen.

*Sermon Note: Substituting Osama Bin Laden for the tax collector in this parable by no means lends support to the activities of Osama Bin Laden or to any terrorist organization. The objective is for the 21st century listener/reader to have their preconceived ideas turned “upside down”; in the same way that the 1st century listeners would have been challenged.

I love pie. I’m not sure who gets the credit for that. Growing up in a diabetic household, pie was not a staple on our table. But honestly, I think that it was really less about the diabetes, and more that my mother was not a strong baker. Oh she could cook alright, but pies were not her forte. However, the same cannot be said about my Aunts. They could bake pies! And bake they did, for every Thanksgiving Dinner at our farm. While my mom and sister would dutifully put together the traditional Pumpkin and Pecan, my Aunts would bring in all the rest . . . Apple, Cherry, Blueberry, Rhubarb, and even Mince Meat. It was truly a smorgasbord for the senses. Every year, just as soon as the main course was finished, I would push myself up from the table and accompany my Grandfather to the living room where the pies were laid out on in all their glory. He would start at one end, taking a little slice of each pie. And every year he would ask me the same question, “Do you know what my favorite pie is?” “No” I would sheepishly reply. He would smile his grandfatherly smile and say, “Warm. I love warm pie!”

In our parable this week (Luke 18:9-14), is appears that Jesus is inviting the Pharisee to eat a little bit of Humble Pie. Now, I’m not completely certain what Humble Pie is (beside’s a UK Rock Band) but I think we could all agree that it probably does not taste very good, even warm.  But as with all our parables, we have to wonder, is more going on here? Come join us this Sunday as we explore the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. See you Sunday!