Christian Pathway

(Sermon on 90th anniversary of St Andrews)

Wow 90 years, that’s almost as old as I felt on Boxing day.

It’s a long time, its 90 years of service to our community.
As I discovered when I walked through those doors for the first time its 90 years of welcome.

As I and many here today discovered, its 90 years of people like me finding home.

St Andrews has its own thing going on and I wouldn’t fit anywhere else.

Its service doesn’t sound like anyone else’s anywhere actually. 

I don’t know where our little musical breaks come from, but they are ours. I recall the first time they came back after Covid, it was like the return of something very special you never even knew you had missed.

2014 was when I walked through the doors after a hideously long email to jane ( I always think she must have wondered who was this nutter).

 I always recall the first time I saw the peace being done, I was what the heck is this and Jane was like don’t worry it’s not as mad as it looks , 

and when I messed up , Jane was like don’t worry its st Andrews not st Paul’s.

Now we have Jonathan’s music and arts here,  and the place welcomes a new phase. 

Please for all those that are from our other two churches, none of this is something the others aren’t, or better or worse. 

But That’s the point of this place it’s a flexible space to be.  This place is come as you are

, not as we are 

 But the looseness of the tradition, the idea that  it doesn’t matter when it all goes wrong, in fact we don’t see it as wrong, a bit like Kintsugi 

St Andrews embraces its and  your flaws and imperfections.  

The ability to welcome whoever walks through that door means for those of us who have no idea of how a church service works have barely see one and make a few mistakes along the way while learning.  St andrews is the place.

That opens the door a little wider to some.  . That ability to enjoy imperfection, means us that don’t fit in where tradition is really important allows us to know despite our wobbling along for some it’s the only place for us and that means

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household,  built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

Thanks Jesus you said it so much better than me.

We found home here  and although  we may have  wandered about arguing with him  like I did however eventually like 

Like the supposedly lost jesus in todays  reading when other think you are lost 

They find you in your fathers house 

Exactly as he planned 

when I came from praying alone in my room to a church I wanted to find a place where Jesus is. 

   

Despite being where we should be 

We rely a LOT on grace in this place, its messy, and muddles along, but we are here and trying to come through all that to be his children.   We are the family,  with the members that know  that we wouldn’t fit into any other family.    That’s why our lord planted us here. 

In the high street means this dysfunctional family is right in the heart of essentially an east end town moved to essex, and its doors open to the public.  

So, it’s a natural fit for the wonderful painting and art that shares our building. I am really missing the icons we had for a while, and Eva is always special. 

See I cant talk about 90 years but that I am sure doesn’t matter too much, because  when I got here, St Andrews was already this.

 I haven’t changed this place one little bit. It already knew what it was. Its its own thing and it knows itself and presents happy as I am happy as you are , to the world.

It doesn’t ask you to change nor does it want to change.  That’s a place where self-respect comes from, and it turns that ability to love itself and show that love others. You have to love yourself to be able to love others.

That’s the past, what about the future

Here’s what think happens to  St Andrews in the next 90 years.  

I will have fallen off the twig as will most if not all of us here today.

Someone else will have walked through those doors maybe quite deaf, and unable to follow the service arguing with jesus staring up at that cross or maybe they wont .   

But whatever their story they wont know they are here forever , but they will know they will know somewhere very deep they found home.  They wont know their ears will be healed,  and they will end up up here but they will know Jesus is lord.  So whatever their adventure will be, it will be one where our Lord takes them somewhere 

A) to  the only place that would have them and then let them excel as they are. And 

B) to a place they never ever even realised existed or was remotely possible 

It may not even be this building as I’m sure the developers one day will make the sums work and give us a nice new building with, our own roof. But that wont matter because the people that come here are way more important to what makes this place its own little thing than bricks and mortar.

The conversation this place has with its town may change, but it will always come from a place of come as you are, not as we are.

  Don’t change or learn us, let us learn you.  For some that will be just what they are looking for. Even though they may not know it.

Apologies for anyone here not from St Andrews, for having to listen to my little love letter to this place.   But you don’t get to be 90 every day, and who knows where Ill be when this place gets to be a 100.

I asked to preach today because I really love this place,  and as Jonathan one day found I am really protective of it.  I wrote this sermon in one hit, because it was waiting inside me.   Which is very like when I came through that door.  St Andrews was already there

But that’s because I think it’s a special place, in its own understated, undemonstrative way it’s really unique.  I regard being here as special and being able to preach today, nothing short of a miracle (a series of miracles actually).

Because the miracles of Jesus always have and do and will always happen in this place.
Amen