Month: July 2026

July 19, 2026  Proper 11  First Congregational Church UCC, Brimfield MA

Romans 8:12-25   So then, brothers and sisters, we are obligated, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—for if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 

For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs: heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if we in fact suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.

I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God, for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its enslavement to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning together as it suffers together the pains of labor, and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 

For in hope we were saved. 

Now hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what one already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God our Rock and our Redeemer.  Amen.

Last week, I tried to explain how Paul understands our relationship with God, and then afterwards, in conversations with folks who heard me, I realized that I needed to be clearer about what’s going on here and why it’s good news for us all.

This can be complicated, so if you’re confused afterwards, let’s talk.  

First off, remember that Paul pretty much always things in terms of off or on, right or wrong, this or that.  He’s really into those kinds of choices, and really really uninterested in gray areas.  So he says that human beings like us are either good or not good, and he uses the words flesh and spirit to illustrate his dichotomy.

This is a problem, because over the centuries, it’s come to mean that flesh, the body, is bad, and spirituality, spirit, is good.  That’s led to thinking that pleasure is a bad thing; back in the olden days, it led to rules about dancing, or reading books for fun on Sunday, or going to the movies, and indeed it still does lead to those kinds of body-denying choices.  

But that’s wrong.  When Paul says “flesh”, what he means is “all that’s under our control.”  He’s not saying, don’t dance.  He’s not even saying don’t dance on Sundays.  What he’s saying is that we are, even at our best, not capable of always turning down an extra cookie, that we will (not “might”, but “will”) from time to time choose to satisfy ourselves rather than taking care of the other.  And again, he’s not talking about those times when we had to step back to care for ourselves or our family.  Care for self and others is a good, but we are not able, not capable of balancing our needs, our family’s needs and the world’s needs, not all the time, not in every circumstance.

Now I’ve always thought of Paul as one of those people who wake up at 2am thinking again about that time he cheated his friend in third grade, or the time he accidentally hurt the feelings of the kindest person in the synagogue.  You know those kinds of things; they happen to all of us.

Paul reminds us that God deserves our best, and yet we are not capable of giving our best, not consistently.  Not that we’re mean, or cheesy, or that we don’t care, but that it’s just not in our nature to always do the right thing.

The other night I was watching the Indiana Fever play the Golden State Valkyries in WNBA basketball.  Caitlin Clark, that amazing guard out of Iowa — that woman who’s always making 3-pointers?  She couldn’t make a shot that night, not if they’d put the basket down so low I could have dunked.  She’s one of the best basketball players in the world, and she couldn’t make a shot.  

That’s the kind of not perfect that Paul is talking about.  That’s the “flesh”, not able this time to make a basket, not able some other time to reach out in kindness, for whatever reason.

Paul calls this inability sin.  We don’t use the3 word sin in quite that way anymore.  We don’t say we’re sinful because we’re made this way, for instance.  These days, we reserve “sin” for those acts we deliberately choose, for those times we deliberately or negligently act in an evil way, or even times when we irresponsibly forget to do the right.

However you define sin, what Paul is talking about is the very human propensity to do less, eat more, slack off, choose the easier way, and so on.

Now whether you think that God is waiting for you to make a mistake, or choose the lazy path, or whether you yourself get upset when you’ve done something wrong, the good news here is that God is not actually looking for, expecting, or really even wanting perfection from us.

We make up those tough rules about what’s right and what’s wrong to help us remember that what God is really after is that we treat one another with decency and respect, not rigid perfectionism.

Have I told you about the choirs (that’s right, more than one) in my first parish.  We had three choirs, because the parish had three churches.  It was as if we shared a pastor with Southbridge and Charlton, and each church had a choir.  And each choir had a personality.  And yes, in the summers, I led three worship services each Sunday — 8:30, 9:45 and 11:15.   I never nattered on for hours, and couldn’t do coffee hour, but at least each church was only about 15 minutes from the next….

My first church had a superb choir, stocked with people who also sang in the Portland City Opera — really good voices who were expert sight readers.  And we had a modern digital electronic organ, played by a guy who knew how to get good music out of it.  Their music program was super.

My second church also had a great choir, led by a music teacher from a neighboring school — and he played trumpet, so we always had a trumpeter for our Easter sunrise service.  The organist was really good and understood our Hammond B3 (tho they’re not really designed for churches).  She played in a bar on Saturday nights, and sometimes those jazzy rhythms showed up on Sunday morning, especially when she hadn’t yet been home!

And then there was the third church — it was a summer only church — primitive by most standards — we didn’t even have running water, just electricity.  The church chancel (the space down front) was covered with inexpensive bathroom carpeting, the flowers were Woolworth’s grade plastic, and for an instrument we had an old upright piano.  Every spring they had to clear the deceased mice out of the piano before the season began.  The choir director was a violin teacher who was going deaf.  And the choir was composed of half a dozen folks whose best vocal days were way behind them, and one man who, in the winter, was the head of the music program for the schools over in Newton MA.  

If what God wanted out of us was technical perfection, I guess it might have been the first church that came closest… because they had the most natural talent.  But you know, they took their gifts for granted.  Because they were all good sight readers, they didn’t bother to rehearse.  They didn’t even plan much in advance, but the first person who showed up on Sunday would browse through their file of anthems and pick one out.  They’d sing through it once or twice, and that was it.  A lick and a promise got the job done.

It was that third church that came to impress me.  They didn’t have the talent, or the quality instrument.  They worked with a lot of shortcomings — and every Sunday did their darndest to present to God and the congregation their very best.  It wasn’t, to be honest, very good.  But it was the best they had.  Every thing they did in that church was about love of neighbor and extravagant welcome.  

Paul is reminding us that all too often, we judge our worth by the things we have, by outward signs of success  — the newest this, or the best that — but what God is really pleased by, what God hopes we look to, is not things, not stuff, but trying hard, doing our best. showing love, speaking up for justice.  He believes that the day is coming when the whole world will be governed by that kind of welcome, where everyone will have a place at the table, where people will not be judged differently by the color of their skin, or by their physical abilities.

He says the whole creation has been groaning together as it suffers together the pains of labor, and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved.

It’s that hope that sustains us when the lack of not just perfection but even basic decency smacks us in the face.  It’s that hope which allows us to get up in the morning to do it all again.  God loves us now.  God is not waiting for us to “get it” or get better at whatever.  God loves us today, tomorrow, and always, and that gives us that oomph to keep on going.

Amen.

© 2026, Virginia H. Child

July 12, 2026  First Congregational Church UCC, Brimfield MA

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Romans 8:1-11 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. ² For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. ³ For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴ so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.^,* 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.^,* 6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. ⁷ For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed, it cannot, ⁸ and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 

⁹ But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. ¹⁰ But if Christ is in you, then the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. ¹¹ If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you. 

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God our Rock and our Redeemer.  Amen.

We’ve been working our way through Paul’s letter to the Romans for the past few weeks, and now we’ve come to the payoff.  Chapter after chapter, verse after verse, Paul has been basically saying two things:  first, that there’s no point in thinking of ourselves as unacceptable because we can’t be perfect, and second, that God loves us as we are, without, before we do anything.

You’ll remember that the scholars think this letter is the closest Paul ever came to writing out what be believed in any sort of systematic fashion.  Usually the letters we read from him are just that, letters.  Letters to various and sundry communities all around what’s now Turkey, to churches he’d started, helping them, giving them advice.  They’re the first century equivalent of a meeting with our Associate Conference Minister, Carol Steinbrecher.  And that’s great, but the Letter to the Romans is different.

For one things, this isn’t a letter to a church Paul established.  He’s never been to Rome and isn’t sure they want him there.  So this letter was written to help them understand who he is and why he says the things he does.  That said, while Paul has never been to Rome, he does know a fair amount about the Christian community there, especially that it’s mostly composed of struggling Jewish believers, and more established Roman converts – and they don’t exactly get along.  In fact, it seems they were constantly struggling to control each other, which is why, throughout this letter, Paul keeps saying both groups are important, each has their own issues, and so on.

So, today, this letter which has been trying to nurture peace between the two groups, moves to the center of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel which is for everyone, whether we think we belong or not.  This is the Gospel for people whose ancestors were passengers on the Mayflower.  And it’s the Gospel for those of us whose ancestors came here in the hold of a triangle-trade ship, sold into slavery.  And it’s the Gospel for those of us who hide from ICE because our skin is brown, or we have an accent.  It proclaims love and peace for all the world.

… there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…

The reading from Matthew says basically the same thing:  ²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

This is what Paul was trying to say to those folks in Rome.  He’d heard it from Jesus and from the other disciples, and wanted them, wants us to hear the same thing.  You are loved.  You are loved as you are.

Mark this chapter 8 in your Bible.  When you are discouraged, underline the first verse again to remind yourself that God loves you.  Remember that when we follow God, follow Jesus, listen to the Spirit, we’ll be on the way to focusing on love and peace, more than anger and frustration.  And remember also those words from Matthew, because they’re right.  It’s not that hard stuff becomes easy, because hard things are always going to be hard… but with God, the hard stuff becomes possible.  With God, we’re able to see beyond the bad, beyond our angers… able to see love, able to recognize beauty, able to practice kindness.  

Bad things will still happen, we will still face trials, but we will not be alone.  We will have this fellowship, and we will have the unending love of the God who has made us, made us to be messengers of love throughout the world.

We are not alone.  We are loved.

Amen.

© 2026, Virginia H. Child

We’re gathered here today to read the Declaration of Independence, adopted 200 years and one day ago, in Philadelphia, signed by delegates from the thirteen original colonies and sent out, by horseback, to all the land.

It arrived here in Massachusetts sometime after July 13, and before the 17th, when it was printed in Worcester by the presses of the Massachusetts Spy, owned by Isaiah Thomas — whose printing office now resides in Old Sturbridge Village just down the road.  

The website <revolution250.org> tells us that….  Tradition states that Isaiah Thomas, the “Patriot-Printer” read the broadside form the front steps of the First Parish Church on Worcester Common.  

The Provincial Congress considered how best to publicize the arrival of the Declaration and on the 17th of July, 1776 they reported to the House:

“In Council, Ordered, That the Declaration of Independence be printed; and a Copy sent to the Ministers of each Parish, of every Denomination, within this State; and that they severally be required to read the same to their respective Congregations, as soon as divine Service is ended, in the Afternoon, on the first Lord’s-Day after they shall have received it  . . . 

We’re reading this Document today, because this is the time and the place where it was read in 1776 – on the steps of the church building that stood here in those days (and under the trees because it’s too darned hot to actually stand out on the steps today)

It’s important to remember, that what you are hearing is not a description of how things were in 1776, not a description of how things are in 2026.  What the Declaration is, is the declaration of an American Dream.  This is what our ancestors wanted; it’s what we want our world to be too, this is the goal towards which we always work.

It was never perfect — The Boston Globe noted this week that there were changes in the text of the Declaration right up to the last minute.

There are 27 detailed grievances against the king outlined in the Declaration — but there was meant to be a 28th. Thomas Jefferson’s scathing indictment of the slave trade was struck from the document on the eve of the signing, after protests by southern and northern delegates alike.

Slavery then, racism now, help us see the distance between the dream and the reality.  So we read to remind ourselves of the task we join in as citizens of this country — to acknowledge the gaps and to work for the dream.

You’ll be invited, at the end of the reading, to join us in pledging your lives, your fortunes, your sacred honor to this dream, this American dream, just as our ancestors did on that first Independence Day.

Let the reading begin!

© 2026, Virginia H. Child

July 5, 2026  Independence Day   First Congregational Church UCC, Brimfield MA  

Romans 7:15-25 I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good.  But in fact it is no longer I who do it but sin that dwells within me.  For I know that the good does not dwell within me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do the good lies close at hand, but not the ability. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.  Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it but sin that dwells within me.

So I find it to be a law that, when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.  Wretched person that I am!  Who will rescue me from this body of death?   Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God our Rock and our Redeemer.  Amen.

Back in the day, Maine storyteller Jo Radner tells us, every meal includes pie — well, that’s what her dad believed, and her mom made a new pie every day so that he could have pie at breakfast, lunch and dinner.

One day, her mom died, and the family gathered.  As the day progressed, with horror they realized that none of them were pie makers, and their dad expected, needed, a pie to be there for dinner.  Jo’s aunt might have tried, but she was a terrible cook, and so Jo’s parents jumped in — her dad would fix a steak dinner and her mom —- who hated baking — would make a pie.

You need to understand,  her mom had never made a pie before.  She persevered, gave it her best, whacked the daylights out some recalcitrant pie crust, and ended up with a pie that could have been bounced on the floor without breaking… not to mention that it hadn’t occurred to her to mix the ingredients up when she assembled the filling — producing a pie that had layers of apples, then sugar, then flour, then lemon, and then the various spices.

Eating the pie was an experience – she says that to this day, you can break the family up by saying, “have you tasted the lemon yet”…. but each of them ate their slice and their stalwart Maine Yankee farmer father, praised it.  Everyone knew it was terrible, but they all thanked Jo’s mom, who then said, she’d make another pie the next day.

And over the days, her mom’s pies got, not just better, but really good.  

Today’s lesson doesn’t look as though it’s about pie making, any more than it looks like it’s about being a citizen on this Independence Day weekend, but it is both, and more.

St. Paul wants us to stop and take some time to think about what it means that we so often fail in our endeavors…. What does it mean that we are not perfect?  And on this day, so close to the official two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, what he writes applies to our responsibilities as citizens of a country, of this country in particular, though we believe the responsibilities apply to all nations.

What does it mean to be a Christian and a citizen of a country that is not perfect?  Are we, as Christians, supposed to unquestionably support everything our country does?  Or is it our responsibility to ask questions?

And what does it mean that the church itself is no more perfect than we are?  So, does the fact that we are broken mean we have no standing?  Or can/must we speak, even in spite of the ways we’ve fallen short of God’s vision for us?

The most important thing to remember today is that it is our job to stand up for what our faith tells us is right —- that love is the operating principle of the world, that honesty matters, that justice leavened with mercy creates good community.  It tells us that means children need to be loved, housed and fed.  It tells us that everyone is supposed to be welcome.  We build hospitals, create and support public schools, enact laws to help establish safety.

And it doesn’t all work out the way we hoped, but that doesn’t mean we don’t try.

Paul’s lesson encourages us to not stop just because we’ve not yet managed to do it right, not to get discouraged at the failures of others, or even the failures of our country.  We are engaged in a life-long journey of making the world better, one step at a time.  Sometimes, it has to start with us, in our personal lives.  Sometimes, we’re able to go further, to work on issues that cross town or even state boundaries, like establishing the Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor.  And sometimes, we stand up for national issues —- like in the years when we called for truth about what was really happening in our war in Vietnam.

Being a Christian and a citizen is something like being a Christian and a parent.  You’re never going to get everything perfect, but you’re going to continue to work at it, hoping that every day is a little better than the day before.  And just as parents are expected to speak up when their children need guidance, so also are citizens expected to speak up when their country needs their feedback.

That’s what we did in the years before the War for Independence.  Conscious of our own imperfections, humble about our vision for tomorrow, we spoke up, and so we do today as well.

God has called us, in spite of our failures, to be followers on the Christian path.  Strengthened by our faith, let us continue on this way.

Amen.

© 2026, Virginia H. Child