Take it. Break It. Share It. Love It.

What comes to mind when you hear the Oregon Trail? Do you think of the trail of settlers that moved through Kansas in 1841? Do you think of the classic computer game (and now iPhone game?) Wherever your knowledge of the Oregon Trail originates, you probably know that it was not an easy journey. There were many challenges along the way, from the dangers of dysentery to finding food to broken wheels. They took the necessities from home, splitting things up in different wagons, sharing things with other families, and loving each other along the way.

With the struggles of the early American pioneers in mind, read Mark 10:13-16  and Hebrews 1:1-4,2:5-13.

The author of Hebrews says that Jesus is our Salvation Pioneer, that the one who is both fully human and fully divine, paved the way for us to follow. Jesus, being the imprint of God, could have taken a path that we couldn’t follow, or could have chosen to be ashamed of us as brothers and sisters.

Instead, Jesus as our Salvation Pioneer means that we are welcome and expected to join The Way – that we too can get close to perfection – which in this book means fulfilling the purpose to which we are called. In the midst of our hopeless world, we as Christians can have radical hope. We are empowered to live into our identity as Jesus’ brothers and sisters, who praise God alongside Jesus.

On this World Communion Sunday, we can rejoice in our calls as pioneers, as we follow along the trail that Jesus blazed, offering love and radical hospitality to our sisters and brothers around the world. We come together at the table, remembering that Jesus could have chosen a path purely of divine glory, but instead offered himself on the cross for us. We come to the table to take the bread and the cup, break it, share it, and love it, all because of the sacrifice that Jesus made and the sustenance that Jesus continues to offer us on our journey. Thanks be to God!

Grace and peace,

Pastor Kate