Stitched Together By God's Grace

May 12, 2019

Hope Lutheran Church

Rev. Mary Erickson

Acts 9:36-43

Stitched Together by God’s Grace

Friends, may grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and Christ Jesus our Lord.

When I was a young girl, we visited my Grandma Jorgensen. Grandma lived in a small, white house in Luck, Wisconsin.

On one particular day, there came a knock at the front door. Grandma got up from her knitting to see who was there. Standing on the stoop was a neighborhood boy, about 10 years old. He held a Boy Scout shirt and a patch. The patch was about two inches square. He asked Grandma if she would be able to sew the patch onto his shirt. He showed her where it needed to go on the shirt. She happily said yes and told him to come back the next day to retrieve it.

It turns out that my Grandma was known all over Luck as the lady who could sew anything (I did not inherit that gene!). Later, Grandma told me her secret. “You see, Mary,” she explained, “I have an old Singer treadle machine, so I can sew very slowly and go through just about anything.” Grandma still sewed with her old Singer treadle machine. She worked all her magic on that simple machine.

Today we hear a story from the Bible about a seamstress. Her name was Tabitha, which means gazelle. In Greek, her name was Dorcas. That she went by both names tells you something about Joppa, the city where she lived. Ancient Joppa was located along the Mediterranean coastline. It was a port city, so it would have been very multicultural.

Frequently, congregations have a women’s circle which is named the Dorcas Circle. Dorcas Circles tend to be involved in the sewing ministries of the church, like the quilting group.

There are two parts in today’s story about Dorcas. The main story is about her death and how she receives new life. But there’s another part to this story. It’s quite subtle. It’s really almost mentioned like an aside. But it’s quite important! It has to do with Dorcas’ sewing.

Dorcas had a heart filled with compassion. Acts tells us she “was devoted to good works and acts of charity.” Dorcas had befriended the widows in her community. Widows in that day were especially vulnerable. They had no means of securing their own situation. With their husband dead, they were bereft. They had no inheritance rights. So they might live with a relative. But they could easily be kicked out, too, if their remaining kinfolk were not gracious. They relied on the good graces of compassionate souls who would lend them a hand.

It was a delicate situation. Much like many marginalized people today, their situation is very tenuous. They need to be very adept at piecing together all the components necessary to squeak by – sales on food, clothing at Goodwill, a buddy who can help fix their used and rusted car.

The Native American proverb says, “to understand a person, you must first walk a mile in their moccasins.” We need to appreciate the financial tightrope which the economically vulnerable walk.

Dorcas connected with the vulnerable widows of Joppa. She wanted to help them. And she did what she could for them: she sewed! It’s so simple but so effective. Dorcas used her skills and abilities to help others.

It becomes her life passion. She devotes herself to these good works. There is a joy in service. The one who gives, receives. Just as Jesus said, it’s in losing ourselves that we’re able to discover our true identity. We come to realize all that is and all that God has made us to be. We’re embraced by an emerging community around us. Dorcas knew this joy.

A recent news story captured my heart. Several years ago, a woman from British Columbia, Tinney Davidson, moved into a house. It turns out her house was located along a main route for high school students. Every day the students would walk past her house. Tinney loved the students, and so she watched them from her big picture window. Sometimes the students saw her watching them. When that happened, Tinney flashed them her big, warm smile and eagerly waved to them. They smiled and waved back.

It wasn’t long before news of this friendly lady spread among the students at the high school. When they passed her house, they started to look for this lady who would wave to them. They loved it! It was a great way to start off their day: this nice lady who shared her friendship through this welcoming gesture.

This went on for 12 years. Each day, the students walked past Tinney’s house, and they looked for her as much as she looked for them.