We cannot assume that the poor, the oppressed, the blind and those in captivity are not among us every Sunday when we gather as God’s people. Our defining mission is to embody God’s liberating and healing presence to all people—including our brother or sister who sits next to us in the pew. At the same time, we must work mightily to make the walls of our churches more permeable so that congregational members can move out to serve and to invite others to come in to experience the persistent love of God in Jesus Christ.
From “Sheltering and Serving” by Kati Kluckman-Ault, from the March 2013 issue of Gather magazine. Today is the sixth Sunday after Pentecost. The readings are 1 Kings 19:15-16, 19-21; 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14 (semicontinuous); Psalm 16; Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20 (semicontinuous); Galatians 5:1, 13-25; Luke 9:51-62.