Celebration

Did you notice something different in the church when you came in this morning? Well, you might have noticed that there wasn’t any music or singing. That’s because our ministers, organist and choir aren’t here. There’s a reason for that.

The last time Bishop Sue was here with us, she told us that our church was part of some larger groups of churches. One of those groups is the Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, and today it is celebrating its 300th birthday! There is a big party going on in Halifax this afternoon with lots of singing, praise, prayers and Holy Communion. Our organist, choir and ministers are taking part in all of the fun, and that’s why they aren’t with us this morning. They have to be at the party early to have some last-minute practices for their roles in the celebration.

Boys and girls, Jesus can cause us to celebrate as well, even when we don’t feel like celebrating. In our Gospel reading this morning, we will be hearing about a widow whose only son has died. If you’ve ever seen a loved one die, or if you’ve seen a special pet die, you know that it can be a very sad time. The widow in this story was very sad and so were her friends and her son’s friends. They were crying as the body was being taken out of the town to the cemetery, and on the way they met Jesus and his disciples. Jesus was so moved by what happened that he comforted the widow and brought her son back to life. The widow and the mourners were so happy that they started celebrating and praising God. We can be like that too. We can turn to God in out times of sadness and receive comfort and joy just by believing in him.

Let us bow our heads for a moment of prayer. Dear God, thank you for your son Jesus Christ. Thank you for showing us that by believing in him, he gives us hope. Thank you for turning our sadness into joy. We ask this in the name of your Son our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN.