A Message from Kahu Alan Akana

by admin | Sep 15, 2015 | Message from Kahu

A SEASON OF HOPE

Our theme for September and the first Sunday of October is “Hope”. This week I shared with the congregation a poem called “Lost Generation” by Jonathan Reed that I read in Diana Butler Bass’ book, Christianity after Religion. It is a poem of despair and hope…and here it is:

I am part of a lost generation

and I refuse to believe that

I can change the world

I realize this may be a shock but

“Happiness comes from within.”

is a lie, and

“Money will make me happy.”

So in 30 years I will tell my children

they are not the most important thing in my life

My employer will know that

I have my priorities straight because

work

is more important than

family

I tell you this

Once upon a time

Families stayed together

but this will not be true in my era

This is a quick fix society

Experts tell me

30 years from now, I will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of my divorce

I do not concede that

I will live in a country of my own making

In the future

Environmental destruction will be the norm

No longer can it be said that

My peers and I care about this earth

It will be evident that

My generation is apathetic and lethargic

It is foolish to presume that

There is hope.

You might be wondering why I said this is a poem of despair and hope, when it sounds like only despair at this point; but now read the final line of the poem and then read the poem in reverse, line by line:

And all of this will come true unless we choose to reverse it.

We read the same words forwards and backwards—just in a different order—and how we choose to see these words can fill us with either despair or hope. The good news is: We get to choose! Every single day, we get to choose to live with either despair or hope; and how we choose to see the world will determine the outcome of the world. I choose hope for my life and for Koloa Union Church. I invite you to join me in choosing hope and being committed to bringing love, joy and hope to this world!

You may also want to hear the poem read by a a young woman on YouTube by clicking HERE.

Aloha nui!

Kahu Alan Akana

A Message from Kahu Alan Akana

by admin | Sep 10, 2015 | Message from Kahu

FAITH AND HOPE

On Sunday, I shared with the congregation about an inspiring story I heard on NPR regarding the thousands of refugees from the Middle East and North Africa pouring into Hungary. Initially, the Hungarian government allowed the refugees to purchase train tickets to countries to the north, namely Austria and Germany, where they would be welcomed to begin a new life. After many of the refugees arrived in Hungary, the government decided to no longer allow them to board trains for the north; so the refugees decided to walk hundreds of miles to their final destinations.

The part of the story that really touched me was hearing how the Hungarian people responded: they gathered together food, blankets, shoes and clothing and brought them to the refugees. One Hungarian woman gave some of her personal belongings to a woman and looked down to see that she was wearing flip-flops. She immediately took off her shoes and gave them to the woman because she needed them for the long journey ahead.

I mentioned on Sunday that this inspiring story was one of “faith in action,” of people “rich in faith.” It also occurred to me that this is story full of hope: hope in humanity, hope for the Church, and hope for our world. During the next four Sundays, our theme in our worship services will be “A FUTURE WITH HOPE.” On October 4th, we will celebrate our hope as a church by giving members and friends the opportunity to make a financial commitment to our church’s general fund for 2016 during the worship service…and then enjoy a great time of food and fellowship at our Oktoberfest Celebration right after church.

I hope you will join us during the next four Sundays as we prepare for “A FUTURE WITH HOPE.”

Aloha nui!

Kahu Alan Akana

A Message from Kahu Alan Akana

by admin | Sep 6, 2015 | Message from Kahu

DRAWING NEAR TO GOD

On Sunday, we took a look at the traditions of the church and what makes them valuable (or…perhaps not so valuable!). I shared about a previous church where I served in which a beautiful chapel was no longer used because the people couldn’t let go of anything that had been donated to the church. The chapel was filled with broken and unused items which hadn’t been touched in decades. Since the chapel was the only place where there was any room left to store these items, we could no longer use the chapel for prayer, meditation, small memorial services or weddings.

As I reflected on this predicament, it became clear to me that we often allow traditions to get in the way of moving forward. Even worse, we can allow those traditions to keep us from drawing near to God and enabling others to do the same.

In Mark 7, Jesus had some harsh words for the religious leaders of his day for doing that very thing. They kept all of their traditions and insisted that others do the same. Yet, they kept people from drawing closer to God, and therefore missed the whole point of their religion!

Whatever traditions and practices we decide to keep (or start), let’s make sure that they truly draw us closer to God and one another…and encourage others to do the same! This good to consider for our church, as well as for our personal lives and our families.

Aloha nui!

Kahu Alan Akana