Rev. Brenda Leigey was installed as the State College District Superintendent at Faith UMC, Bellefonte on October 27, 2019. Following is her (edited) installation address.
Whether I am traveling on I-80, I-99, where I can travel 65-70 miles per hour or more; or Pennsylvania Routes 45, 35, 75, 64, 120, 322 – I am surrounded by the majestic beauty of five counties – Clearfield, Centre, Clinton, Juniata, and Mifflin which make up this wonderful district I serve, State College!
It is a mixture of forests, miles of farmland, and an expanse of Appalachian Mountain ranges: Mt. Nittany, Bald Eagle, Shade Mountain, and the valleys – Sugar Valley, Penns Valley, Mt. Nittany Valley, Bald Eagle Valley, and Moshannon Valley.
As I travel to visit churches, I am awed by God’s creation. I even take time to slow down, not only because some of the roads are winding, but to take in the sites. I will slow down as I go by farms to see if there are any horses in the pastures or if there is any activity on a farm. I love the “smells” that are in the air! I slow down to let the critters cross the road –deer, squirrels, rabbits, possums – snakes are another story!
And nestled in the mountains, and valleys, or standing tall in the towns, are the churches of the State College District. I marvel at the fact that we have churches still in existence since the 1800s – one in existence since 1787 – who are still worshiping communities. Even with the passing of time and all the changes over the years the churches remain. I love the smell of the older churches – some of you understand what I mean – that smell in the church that takes you back to the days gone by.
The churches remain because God called and there was a vision to build a church in a community to be a place of faith and worship; a place where people could hear the good news of Jesus; the love of Jesus.
Loving like Jesus.
We are called to love like Jesus.
Jesus gave to us a command: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13)
My friends, it is time, to get back to loving Jesus and loving like Jesus.
You have to choose to love like Jesus. It is not a liberal or conservative thing; it is not a Bishop, District Superintendent, or Pastor thing. [Everyone is called] to love like Jesus.
Today, in our society we are struggling to understand what it means and how we are to love and care for one another even in the life of our denomination. We are struggling with scripture and theological understanding on how to love one another. We are in a transitional time, but the heart of the matter, as Christians, is that we are to love like Jesus! At least try to make a heart centered effort to love like Jesus.
Have you ever tried to get a child or a grandchild to try a new food, only to have them make a gagging noise without even putting it in their mouths.
And through the gagging noises and resistance we often say: “How can you know whether or not you like it if you don’t try it?”
This is true of many things in life; food, sports, careers... We really don’t know whether we will like it until we try whatever “it” maybe. We may discover in the trying that we like, or even love “it.” And then it becomes a part of our life and we work hard to perfect it or enjoy it more often and we just love it more and more.
When I went off to seminary, I didn’t know whether or not I was going to like the fact that God was calling me into ministry as a pastor. Was I up to the task of leading a congregation; dealing with different personalities in the church; preaching every Sunday, and countless meetings?
It wasn’t until I had the opportunity to give it a try that over time I learned to love it more and more because I realized the depth of Jesus’ love and grace for me.
How can we love Jesus until we realize the depth of His love for us? How can we live to love like Jesus if we don’t give it a try?
In the Gospel lesson from John 21, Peter and the disciples go back to fishing on the Sea of Galilee. Up to this point Jesus had already appeared a few times to the disciples since his resurrection.
I am sure Peter is still in a state of personal guilt remembering the conversation he had with Jesus before Jesus was crucified, and every time Jesus appears Peter relives that moment and other moments. Remember when Jesus called him? He was fishing on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus called and Peter decided to give Jesus a try. Peter committed to giving up his life as a fisherman to follow Jesus and learn from him. Peter confessed that he would do anything for Jesus – in his mind he truly loved Jesus.
Peter revisits in his mind when Jesus told His disciples that He was soon going to be arrested and Peter insisted loudly, “Lord I will lay down my life for you.”
He was probably a bit over-confident about it.
And when Jesus answers him by saying “I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” Peter is stunned.
He vows he would never do such a thing! But, sure enough, after Jesus is arrested and as the High Priest is questioning Jesus, we watch helplessly as Peter denies even knowing Jesus.
When the rooster crowed, Peter “broke down and wept.”
Even though the Resurrected Christ has already appeared to Peter, Peter is still a broken and crushed man as are the other disciples.
Getting tired of waiting for Jesus to appear again and not knowing what to do next, Peter throws up his hands and says, “Enough with this, I’m going fishing.” The other disciples go with him. And even though they are expert fishers, they catch nothing!
There they are out on the water with no fish and the sun is coming up – time to go ashore. As they are hauling in their nets, they notice a fire on the beach and it looks like someone is cooking over the coals. John exclaims: “It is the Lord!” And without hesitation Peter jumps out of the boat and swims to shore.
As the other disciples row the boat ashore, no one says a word. They just gather around the fire and eat breakfast with Jesus.
“When they had finished eating,” Jesus said, “(Peter), Simon, son of John, do you truly love me?” At first, Peter’s response to Jesus’ questioning seems evasive.
He doesn’t say, “I love you,” but “You know that I love you.”
And it makes sense when we really think about it.
After all, in the past Peter had boasted to Jesus about how devoted he was to Him and how much he loved Him, but then when the rubber met the road he failed Him miserably.
Was Peter even sure if he loved Jesus? I mean, how could he love Jesus and deny Him all at the same time?
“Do you love me?” Jesus asks.
The next part of the conversation between Jesus and Peter is one of the most awesome conversations in the Bible. The most remarkable thing about it is that Jesus gives Peter the opportunity to be faithful and obedient throughout his lifetime, proving to Peter that he does indeed love Jesus and he can show love for Jesus by loving and caring for others.
“Do you love me?” Jesus asks.
“Feed my lambs.”
“Take care of my sheep.”
“Feed my sheep.”
In essence, Jesus is asking Peter who he is going to be. Is he going to be a fisherman or a disciple? Peter failed by denying Jesus, but was restored in affirming his love. Failing, being restored, and deciding to follow Jesus can describe all of us. For Peter to follow through with that love for Jesus, he must give himself to the service of God’s people.
I can relate to Peter. In my life, I can admit, that I have failed Jesus in countless ways and so many times.
How about you?
Friends, we need to love like Jesus.
Jesus is calling. He’s calling people who have perhaps made a bit of a mess of things up till now, but whom Jesus is looking at with love, healing, and restoration. Jesus is calling people like us to love and work with him and for him, that his sheep may be fed and that his world may be healed. Because there is more work still to be done.
Caring for other people, feeding other people, loving other people – these are the tangible ways that we come to know that we love Jesus and how we express our love in and for Jesus. Jesus’ love was unbiased, generous, and unconditional. We are to love like Jesus. And loving like Jesus requires a servants’ heart.
- We are to love and feed the hungry (physically and spiritually) and eat with sinners
- We are to love and care for the lonely, the poor, the broken, and discouraged people
- Through Jesus we are to love and liberate those bound by social injustice and prejudice; tearing down the walls of division.
- We are to love and value those who are different and yet who are a creation of God
- We are to love the despised, the oppressed, the sick
- We are to share the Good News of forgiveness and salvation in love
A life lived in Jesus is a life that loves and serves others without boundaries and presuppositions.
My friends we are entrusted to live and love like Jesus! What an awesome responsibility!
Will you love like Jesus?
