Look around you and you’ll notice that one of the fastest growing, most profitable businesses involves renting out storage units. The storage industry is bigger and more profitable than the entertainment industry in Hollywood. People spend more money on storage than on movies or entertainment.
Few people stay in one place anymore. It seems like 1 out of every 4 people you meet were born outside of Cape May. On average, people in the United States move at least eleven times during their lifetime. Sometimes the spaces are bigger; sometimes the spaces are smaller. We get new jobs, we get married, we have families, we get divorced, we become “empty nests,” we move across the country. All of these changes in lifestyle and location can involve a pressing need for storage. We just love or must store “stuff.” If we have access to “bigger barns,” we are liberated and uninhibited about amassing more stuff to fill those empty spaces. We think more “stuff” will make us feel more situated, safe, and secure. While authentic emotional attachments can be a positive influence in our lives, its just a likely that emotional attachments to things can diminish our lives, too. What to do?
Jesus’ parable in this week’s lesson from Luke 12:13-21 reminds us that the best “storage” we can have is not in storage lockers but in the hearts of those we love, the minds of our communities and our neighbors, and those in need. Who did God prioritize to be recipients of our accumulated “stuff” and “treasures”? Those who are treated unjustly, the strangers, visitors, women, children, the sick and injured, the cast-out and the left-out are the real “storage units” for any leftovers and surplus in our lives.
You may want to invite someone with you to worship this week as we talk about life’s storage lockers. (Then get ready for the new!)
Pastor Kevin
“Don’t hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it’s safe from moth and rust and burglars. It’s obvious, isn’t it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being” (Matthew 6:19-21).
Last week we revisited the first moon landing on July 20, 1969. Wow. (You may listen to the message, Mary, Martha, and the Moon, just below on this page.) This week, we hear Jesus teach his followers a prayer. We refer to it as The Lord’s Prayer, but is it the “Lord’s” prayer”? Maybe it should have been called the Disciple’s Prayer, but the Prayer, whatever its title, is a common-sounding prayer. What made the Prayer unique was not it content, but to whom it was addressed. No rabbi in Jesus time, or before or since, would have started any prayer referring to God as “Daddy”! That’s right. “Our Father…” is the term “Daddy” and Jesus shocked his listeners who were not used to having such a personal relationship with the Creator! What’s more, after Jesus’ outrageous prayer lesson, he tells a few stories that encouraged the disciples to even be persistent in prayer, courageous in prayer, with God. Now that’s shocking!
This week, we will revisit the first moon landing on July 20, 1969, when an estimated 650 million people watched in amazement as Neil Armstrong descended a ladder towards the surface of the Moon. Do you remember where you were that Sunday? What was going on in the world? The 
When Jesus’ advance team returned, it was a celebration like no other! Last week I sent the kids on their own “You Go First!” Journey to the balcony to retrieve a hidden treasure and bring it back. remember what they discovered in the yellow bag?! Amazing things happen when Jesus asks us to go first! (You may 
Similarly, Jesus sent an advance team of 72, ordinary people in need of the kindness of strangers, yet given the authority to heal and cast out spirits, a power made known to those who welcome them and provide for their needs. The Jesus way requires trust on the part of those going and those to whom the disciples are sent to produce a plentiful harvest to be gathered, shared and used to feed the world, physically and spiritually.
Maybe you’re like me, feeling a bit overwhelmed when my grandkids wanted me to go on the Buccaneer Pirate Ride. Whoa! Did I want to go first? No way. But, I knew it was important to them, and also to me. Wow! Going first can be scary sometimes, but God sends us ahead with the promise of a harvest of goodness, if we don’t give up! What a ride!!
Do you know what an Advance Team is? When an important plan is underway, like when the President of the United States has to visit, a team of people, an advance team, is sent first to prepare, check it out, bring back information, and be sure its secure for the president’s visit. Let’s experience being on an advance team together. Would you enjoy that? OK! Are you ready? Pay careful attention to the directions, and up in the balcony, you will find a yellow bag. (More details are given you will hear in the message.) Before I send you, let’s pray and ask God to help you. (Prayer.) (Returning with the yellow bag!) Great job. Enjoy the treats in the bag. Choose your favorite! And remember, God has an advance team. You know who that is, right? Yes! You! Now go, listen to Jesus’ word, and enjoy your discovery every day!
The Rubicon river in Italy is not large, but it holds a huge place in history. You have heard the phrase, “Crossing the Rubicon,” which means to pass a point of no return. It refers to Julius Caesar’s armies crossing of the river in 49 BC which was a dangerous, revolutionary act! There was no going back for Caesar once he was on the other side.
When we cross the Rubicon, a revolution is begun and our perspective changes. We see things from a changed vantage point. We stand in a new place, and step off in a new direction. Jesus was constantly inviting his followers to embrace paradigm shifts. Sure, its uncomfortable. Scary at times. Uncertainty, fear, and dread (and it can sometimes feel this way!) are never fun! But we demonstrate our trust and love of God when we decide to follow Jesus with opened eyes, in a spiritually open and intellectually honest way, and embrace God’s emerging future. The future is now. Today. Tomorrow. And beyond. If following Jesus doesn’t feel like an adventure to you, maybe your feet are still in the river?
This week we celebrate the 4th of July. Do you know why? Because somebody started a revolution! A group of women and men got together not far from here in Philadelphia and made a decision to change who the nation followed. Instead of England, and King George, they decided to follow God’s