by admin | May 25, 2017 | Message from Kahu
The Spirit of Truth
“This is the Spirit of Truth” (John 14:17)
On Sunday, I shared the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf. The shepherd boy of the village cried, “Wolf! Wolf!” from the top of a hill when there was no wolf. He then laughed at the villagers for rushing up the hill to protect the sheep of the village. It was so funny to the boy that he did it again the next day. After rushing up the hill twice, the people of the village had lost their trust in him. The next day a wolf actually came to the hill and attacked the sheep. When the boy cried out, “Wolf! Wolf!” the people ignored his pleas, as they figured he was just wanting to have another practical joke at their expense. After they realized that there really was a wolf, the shepherd boy asked them why they didn’t come and help him protect the sheep from the wolf, the village elder said to the boy, “It is hard to believe someone who doesn’t always tell the truth.”
Telling the truth is a basic virtue in all religions and cultures. In the Gospel of John, the words “truth” and “true” are found over forty times. It was very important to John to portray Jesus not only as someone who told the truth, but someone who actually embodied truth, who internalized it, who knew that the Spirit of truth was within him and his followers.
The Spirit of truth is within us as well. Imagine how our lives, our relationships, communities and world would be different if we paid attention to the Spirit of truth within us and within others.
May this week be a time where you embody truth as Jesus did. After all, you have the same Spirit within you!
Aloha nui!
Kahu Alan Akana
____________
Click HERE to watch a video of Sunday’s sermon. Videos of Kahu’s sermons are available most weeks. Please share these videos with friends and invite them to church. You can also subscribe on YouTube anytime you watch a sermon; that way you can easily watch any past sermon and even receive a notification when a new sermon is posted.
“A Message from Kahu Alan Akana” is provided most weeks by the Kahu (Pastor) of Koloa Union Church, a congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference.
by admin | May 16, 2017 | Message from Kahu
You Know the Way (John 14:1-14)
On Sunday, I shared with the congregation about several people who found the way against all odds and while facing seemingly unsurmountable challenges. My maternal grandmother Alice was one of those people. Wanting to be an expert in agricultural sciences was her dream as a young girl when she was growing up in rural Montana. Family and friends laughed at her because this was considered “man’s work,” and besides, she would have to go to college and get a degree in agriculture to achieve her goal, and a woman had never done that before, at least not in Montana. To make it even more challenging, there wasn’t even a high school within many miles of the small community of Rockvale where Alice grew up.
Alice, however, was determined to achieve her dreams. She left home at 14 to attend high school and then attended Montana State College (now University) in Bozeman in order to achieve her dream. The only problem was that no organization was willing to hire her after she graduated. It was so entrenched in the culture that agriculture was a “man’s work” that she couldn’t find employment even though she was better qualified than some of the men who did get the jobs.
Alice then met a handsome young man with a decent job, who made her all kinds of promises if she would marry him. About 5 years later, she found herself as a mother of three young children (my mother and two uncles) and married to a completely irresponsible alcoholic who spent most of his money on alcohol and gambling. Alice made clothespin bags in order to make a little money for food for her and the children, and made regular visits to the food bank.
One day, her husband took her for a ride and was in a bad car accident with a train. (Alice wondered for the rest of her life if driving under the influence of alcohol was the reason he didn’t look before crossing the train tracks.) Alice ended up in the hospital with a broken neck and burns all over her body. When she regained consciousness she remembered hearing the doctor tell her family that she would not survive.
I am astounded that my grandmother found her way…out of the hospital…back to college…raising her three children during the Depression…moving to Kauai as the University of Hawaii Extension Services Home Agent and 4H leader.
When Jesus’ disciple Thomas asked, “How can we know the way,” they were entering a fearful, anxious and uncertain time in their lives (and I’m pretty sure we have all been there at least once!). Jesus said in that same passage: “You know the way,” and “I am the way.” These two statements give me tremendous courage because I am reminded that I too know the way, and it is the person of Jesus. I many not know the destination or the path I might travel, but the way of Jesus is my way. It is the way of compassion, grace, light and wisdom. When I am being these things and trusting these things, I know that I am walking in the way of Jesus.
When you are walking through dark times, I invite you to look to Jesus—all that he was and is to this day—and walk in his way; and remember, his words to the disciples still ring true for us: “You know the way.”
Aloha nui!
Kahu Alan Akana
_______________
Videos of Kahu’s sermons are available most weeks. Please share these videos with friends and invite them to church. You can also subscribe to Kahu’s sermon page on YouTube; that way you can easily watch any past sermon and even receive a notification when a new sermon is posted.
“A Message from Kahu Alan Akana” is provided most weeks by the Kahu (Pastor) of Koloa Union Church, a congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference.
by admin | May 12, 2017 | Message from Kahu
Pacific School of Religion
On Sunday morning, I was sitting on an airplane to Oakland in order to attend the spring meeting of the Board of Trustees at Pacific School of Religion (PSR) in Berkeley. I have been serving on the board for a year and a half and now feel more strongly than ever about the importance of theological education and training for ministry for our future pastors and other servants of the church.
On Tuesday afternoon, I had the privilege of attending a reception for two of PSR’s longtime faculty who are leaving: one due to a new job as dean at another theological school and the other due to retirement after 26 years at the school. As students, faculty and staff expressed their appreciation for these two beloved professors, I was touched by their commitment not only to quality education but to the students they taught over many years. PSR is not only a place to learn theology, but a place to experience community as well. It is a place where theology happens as people experience community. In other words, it is a training ground for future church and community leaders.
As you probably know, I have also been serving for the past two years in various capacities on the Hawaii Conference Council and Board of Trustees. One of the things I hear on all of our islands is the need for more well trained local church leaders. We need places like PSR to provide the education and training. I want to thank the people of Koloa Union Church for allowing me to serve the wider church in the ways that I do. I am convinced that my time spent serving in these ways benefits all of our churches, including our own. Perhaps some day, a current or future student of PSR will be a pastor of Koloa Union Church because of the work we are doing today.
In the meantime, I am grateful for the opportunities to make a difference in the church and in the world.
Aloha nui!
Kahu Alan Akana
_______________
Click HERE to see a video of LAST week’s Sunday sermon. Videos of Kahu’s sermons are available most weeks. Please share these videos with friends and invite them to church. You can also subscribe to Kahu’s sermon page on YouTube; that way you can easily watch any past sermon and even receive a notification when a new sermon is posted.
“A Message from Kahu Alan Akana” is provided most weeks by the Kahu (Pastor) of Koloa Union Church, a congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference.
by admin | Apr 28, 2017 | Message from Kahu
The Earth Our Home
Psalm 104
How many are your works, O Lord!
In wisdom you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures!
On Sunday, I shared with the congregation that Martin Luther, often called “The Father of the Protestant Reformation,” was once asked what he would do if he knew Jesus were coming back tomorrow. He responded that he would plant a tree! You might ask, “Why plant a tree if Jesus is returning and the world as we know it might come to an end?” I believe the most appropriate response is: ” That’s what we are here for.”
In the creation story found in the book of Genesis, chapter 2, God created an earthling (Hebrew: adam) from the ground (adamah) and breathed life into it. Then the earthling, later called Adam, was placed in a garden called Eden; and the Scriptures tell us that the reason Adam was there was twofold:
- First and foremost, Adam was to care for the garden.
- Secondly, Adam was to eat from the garden.
In our Judeo-Christian tradition, Adam has become the symbol for humanity and Eden the symbol for the Earth; and we humans have been placed on the Earth for the same reason Adam was placed in the garden:
- To care for the Earth.
- To eat from the Earth.
We have done a pretty good job at eating from the Earth but not so good at caring for it. As we celebrated Earth Day this past weekend, I challenged us all to consider the words of Martin Luther: Let’s plant trees… today… tomorrow… and each and every day until Jesus returns… and do whatever else we can to care for this beautiful Earth that feeds us and gives us such joy and pleasure. After all, that’s what we are here for!
Aloha nui!
Kahu Alan Akana
____________
Click HERE to watch a video of Sunday’s sermon. Videos of Kahu’s sermons are available most weeks. Please share these videos with friends and invite them to church. You can also subscribe on YouTube anytime you watch a sermon; that way you can easily watch any past sermon and even receive a notification when a new sermon is posted.
“A Message from Kahu Alan Akana” is provided most weeks by the Kahu (Pastor) of Koloa Union Church, a congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference.
by admin | Apr 19, 2017 | Message from Kahu
By the Grace of God, I Am What I Am
1 Corinthians 15:10
Easter Sunday was a very special day in the life of Koloa Union Church! During our worship service, we baptized five children and two adults, and we welcomed 6 new members! The service was filled with hopeful and beautiful music.
My message focused on the Apostle Paul’s message to the Corinthians: how the risen Christ appeared to so many people at different times and in different ways. Paul says that Christ even appeared to him—not that he deserved it. And then Paul says, “But by the grace of God, I am what I am.” I shared that this is the idea is the point of our baptisms: I am what I am, you are what you are, we are what we are, by the grace of God. As you read Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, it is apparent that God’s love flows into our lives and fills us up, so much so that this love spills over into the lives of others; for we are all God’s beloved children.
I shared the story of Louie Zamperini, the American Olympian who survived 47 days in an inflatable raft on the open ocean and then two years in a POW camp during World War II. He left for the war as a national hero, but came home feeling broken and ashamed. His depression, PTSD and inability to sleep drove hime to drinking, and his life was quickly spiraling downward. Yet, he remembered a promise he made to God while he was floating at sea: “If you save me, I will serve you forever.” He found his old Bible and started attending church services, and he too encountered the risen Christ. He no longer saw himself as a national hero or a broken person who barely made it home from the war alive. Rather, he was a beloved child of God; and God’s love for him was so immense he found himself sharing it with others. He too came to realize what the Apostle Paul realized: “By the grace of God, I am what I am.”
May you also realize that those same words are for your life as well. I invite you to say them over and over—and then just see what God might do with your life.
Aloha nui!
Kahu Alan Akana
____________
Click HERE to see a video of Sunday’s sermon. Videos of Kahu’s sermons are available most weeks. Please share these videos with friends and invite them to church. You can also subscribe on YouTube anytime you watch a sermon; that way you can easily watch any past sermon and even receive a notification when a new sermon is posted.
“A Message from Kahu Alan Akana” is provided most weeks by the Kahu (Pastor) of Koloa Union Church, a congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference.
by admin | Apr 11, 2017 | Message from Kahu
BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS
FOR THEY WILL BE CALLED CHILDREN OF GOD
MATTHEW 5:9
During our worship service on Sunday, the children of the church performed their Easter play for us called, “It wouldn’t be Easter without….” They talked about all of the things that children like about Easter: the Easter bunny, Easter baskets, candy, eggs and, of course, peeps! Yet the children reminded us that it wouldn’t be Easter without Jesus, and it wouldn’t be the same without everyone! It was a beautiful and meaningful play, as the children mentioned Palm Sunday, Easter, resurrection, Jesus and the importance of everyone feeling welcome.
I then shared briefly about Jesus’ message of peace as he entered Jerusalem on a donkey and as the crowd spread their branches on the ground before him and shouted “Hosanna!” His peace was very different from Pax Romana—the peace of the Roman Empire. The Romans used exploitation, oppression and intimidation to get what they wanted, and they called it “peace.”
Jesus taught an altogether different way of understanding peace. To him, peace meant life, love, and service to one another. As followers of Jesus, we too understand peace in this way. I invited everyone to look around and discover the places where peace is missing—and bring peace to those places: life, love and service to one another.
I invite you now to look around this week and do just that; I also invite you to join us on Maundy Thursday as we commemorate Jesus’ last supper with his disciples…to our Easter sunrise service at Kukuiolono Park… and our Easter worship service at the church. May this Holy Week and Easter be filled with hope as we remember that life and peace are always possible—even when it seems like it’s the last thing that can happen.
Aloha nui!
Kahu Alan Akana
“A Message from Kahu Alan Akana” is provided most weeks by the Kahu (Pastor) of Koloa Union Church, a congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference.
Recent Comments