Please be seated.
Well, again, let me welcome you this morning.
And especially those of you who are new or joining us for the first time or joining us
for the first time in a while, we're delighted to have you.
And we're delighted at the ability just to worship together in the flesh in person.
I hope I never take that for granted again in my whole life.
But every week, I'm so excited to be together in person.
This is week two of the Home Campaign at Church of the Advent.
And the Home Campaign was birthed out of many, many years of prayer.
This was a church that 14 years ago, we were in a living room praying about what this church
might become, and we prayed about making a long-term commitment to the city, a desire
to love the city long-term.
And as we have seen over the years, God has provided for us and enabled us to do that.
And so now, as we look at that long-term commitment over the course of many generations past this
one, we need a home.
We need a home from which to love and serve this city, the people in this city.
And so that's what this campaign is all about.
It's about making good on that commitment.
And many of us have already committed to this campaign.
I've committed to the campaign.
Our staff has committed.
Our parish council's committed.
Nobody's going to ask anyone to make a commitment today, but in a few weeks, in about three weeks,
we are going to have an opportunity for everybody who would like to commit to being a part of this
campaign to do that.
And I'm really excited about that because, as we've said all along, I think this is a tremendous opportunity
for our church.
And it's an opportunity not just to get a building but to grow spiritually,
to take the biggest step, the biggest leap, the biggest act of trust, I think, that we've ever done
as a community.
And so this is a huge opportunity for us to grow in our faith, to grow in our trust,
particularly in how we think about stewardship and generosity.
And one of the things that I've said all along is one of my core commitments to this process
is that it be a spiritually healthy one, that it matters less to me whether we get a building,
even how much we raise.
The thing that matters most is whether or not we grow, whether or not on the other end of this,
we look back and we say we've been deepened in our faith and matured in our trust in the Lord
through this process.
We are a stronger, more vitalized church that has a little bit more of a sense of how God is able to do
the amazing things in our midst.
And so that's what this process is all about.
So we've been looking at a series over the past few weeks on stewardship, on faith, on trust.
And this week we're looking at Luke chapter 18.
It's a very well-known story.
And this is a story about a man who I think seems to have it all.
And it's the kind of person that I think most people in D.C. want to be, right?
He has everything that, like, D.C. people want, right?
He has…he's wealthy, he has influence, he has power, he has status, he has respect.
He has all of the things that bring people who don't grow up in D.C. to a place like D.C.
He has all of these things.
And yet, for that very reason, this man's actually in grave spiritual danger.
That's something that Jesus reveals over the course of this encounter,
which means we may actually also be in spiritual danger.
So what we're going to do is look at this encounter and we're going to answer these questions.
What is the danger that we're talking about?
How do we know if we are in danger?
And then finally, what can we do about it?
Let's pray and then we'll open God's Word together.
Lord, we thank You for Your Word.
Lord, we thank You that we can come with our distractions or maybe even not even wanting
to be here or confused about why we're here or thinking we know what we need.
And yet, You're the kind of God who knows our hearts.
And You're not just words on a page.
You're living and active.
And You can speak to us and You can do Your work in us through Word and Spirit.
And so I pray that that would happen.
Lord, I know I need that this morning.
I need You to speak into my heart, Lord.
And I pray that You do that for our good, Lord, so that we would grow, but also for Your glory.
And pray this in Your Son's name.
Amen.
So first of all, what is the danger that we're talking about here?
What's the danger that this man is in that we might be in?
What's the concern?
This passage shows us essentially that wealth can be spiritually dangerous, but probably
not for the reason that most of us think.
Even if you're not a Christian, most people know the verse that is in this passage, verse
25, for it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to
enter the kingdom of God.
Now, at first glance, what that seems to say is that rich people will never enter the kingdom
of God, so there must be something inherently wrong with being rich.
There must be something wrong with being wealthy.
God must have a certain disdain for wealthy people that's going to keep them out.
And yet what we need to see is that in the larger context of Scripture, that can't possibly
be the way we interpret this verse.
Because some of the prophets and some of the apostles were very poor, and God used them.
Some of the early church leaders were poor.
They had no social power.
They were slaves.
They were from minority classes.
And yet God used them mightily.
And yet we also know that we have wealthy people like Abraham, or David, or Solomon,
or Matthew, or Lydia, or Joseph of Arimathea.
These are wealthy people, powerful people, influential people.
God used them powerfully right alongside the poor people.
And so what we actually see is that the beauty of God's story is not that He only uses the poor
or that He only uses the rich and powerful.
The beauty of God's story is that He can use anyone and everyone to further His kingdom.
And He weaves all kinds of people into His story.
Okay, so it can't mean that.
So then what does Jesus mean with this verse about wealth and a camel and a needle?
Well, the clue comes from the context of the passage.
If we look at what comes just before this encounter, Jesus has just told a parable about two men praying in the temple.
And it's no coincidence that Luke places that in the same section here.
One man in Jesus' parable comes into the temple, and he's a proud man.
And he says,
I thank God that I'm not like these sinners.
I am a good man.
And then in the parable, there's another person there who is so crushed by his guilt
that all he can do is stare at the floor and beat his chest and say,
God, be merciful to me, a sinner.
And then Jesus says,
that is the man who goes home justified before God.
So the humble man is crying out for mercy.
And mercy is, by definition, crying out for God to give you something that you don't deserve.
Right?
That's what mercy is.
I don't deserve this, but I need it.
The proud man doesn't believe that God needs to give him anything that he doesn't deserve.
He believes that God should give him what he's owed.
Right?
And so another way of saying it is,
the proud man is entirely self-sufficient.
He's his own Savior.
I'm standing before you, God.
I've done all the right things, and I want you to give me what I'm owed.
I upheld my end of the bargain.
Now it's time for you to come through.
So Jesus tells that parable.
And then Jesus points to some children, probably children that were right there,
and says,
whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like one of these children shall not enter it.
Now what's the point there?
What's the difference between a child and an adult?
Well, there are a number of differences.
The one that we're thinking about today is a child, by definition, is not self-sufficient.
You know, a child, by definition,
needs an adult to take care of them and to meet their needs and to show them how to live.
Right?
Once you get to that point where you can do that on your own, you're no longer a child.
You're an adult, by definition.
And so the point is, if we look at all that context,
what's the point of what's really going on here?
One of the most dangerous lies when it comes to our relationship with God is the lie of self-sufficiency.
It's the lie of self-sufficiency.
And this goes all the way back to the fall.
The Bible says that we were actually created to live with God and for God and to love God,
that we were made for that relationship.
You know, St. Augustine says that the Trinity is, at its core,
three persons who each have an entirely other-oriented, self-giving, sacrificial,
other-glorifying love for the other members of the Trinity.
Right?
And we were created to have that kind of relationship with God who made us as an extension of that kind of love.
And so another way of saying it is, life only works if God is at the center of it.
Right?
Life only makes sense if God is at the center of it.
If you think about a solar system, you know,
why do all of the planets not constantly crash into each other?
Why is there not abject chaos in our solar system?
Well, it's because they all share the same central object around which they orbit.
It is their relationship with the sun at the center that creates harmony in their relationships with one another.
Right?
Life is made to operate best when God is at the center of our orbit.
And so the great lie of Satan is to say, that's not actually true.
Life actually works better if you get to decide what's at the center of your life.
And might I make a suggestion?
Maybe you should be at the center of your life.
And that great lie that says, you don't need God to be at the center of your life.
God is great.
God is a nice add-on.
God can be a helpful accessory, but you don't need Him to be at the center of your life.
That goes all the way back to Genesis chapter 3.
That's the lie of self-sufficiency.
So this is why wealth can be so dangerous.
Because what does wealth do to that lie?
Why?
Well, it injects rocket fuel into it.
You know?
It pours gasoline on it.
You know?
It greatly, greatly reinforces and strengthens the plausibility that I really don't need anything outside of myself.
Because it makes us more self-sufficient.
Right?
So, you know, if you're wealthy, and maybe you're sitting here thinking, I'm not really that wealthy.
You know, this maybe applies to…I know that guy.
It applies to him, not to me.
If you're wealthy, and by that I mean you have a place to live in relative safety.
Right?
You know, we just this week are grieving the dramatic increase in gun violence in D.C.
And people we know in our community who know and are grieving kids who were shot.
Right?
And killed.
And that's awful.
And the reality is that there are certain neighborhoods in D.C.
where if you live in that neighborhood and you have a certain color skin,
and it's like a death sentence.
Right?
So, if you live in relative safety,
if you have a steady job, steady income,
if you have some kind of a plan or you've thought about retirement,
if retirement even is something that is in your sort of vocabulary,
if you have access to health care, if you have access to education,
if you have access to transportation,
if you have the kind of flexibility that allows you to work from home if you need to,
especially if like child care falls through,
if you have access to grocery stores that sell fresh produce,
24-hour pharmacies where you can get pretty much any medication you need within a day or two,
if you can get almost any product you can imagine delivered to your house within 24 to 48 hours
with the click of a button,
then chances are this probably applies to you.
Because here's the question, like if those things are true about your life,
how do you convince a person like that that they need anything?
It's like most of my needs I don't even think about
because they just get met automatically.
Right?
So, how do you convince a person like that that they need anything?
That's the danger of wealth.
So, that's the first point.
Second question,
how do we know if we're in danger?
Because as I said,
it's not…
you're not automatically corrupt if you're wealthy.
You're in danger.
How do we know if we're in danger?
Well, look at this man's question to Jesus.
Good teacher,
what must I do to inherit eternal life?
Right there, we know he's in danger.
This guy's in danger.
That one sentence,
he's in danger.
He's in the red zone.
So, how do we know that?
There are actually three signs.
If we break down this question,
there are three signs of danger
that we need to be aware of in our own lives.
The first thing that we see here
is the way this man perceives Jesus.
Right away, we see that this man perceives Jesus as an advisor,
a good teacher,
but not necessarily a savior.
He calls him good teacher,
and Jesus says,
why do you call me good?
Only God is good.
And this is one of those great places
where you see Jesus' genius
in the fact that he is not above using irony.
And this is a kind of dramatic irony here,
because we know who Jesus is as the reader,
and we're reading this,
and we see what this man is saying,
and so Jesus essentially says,
why do you call me good?
Are you saying that I'm God?
And it's this great moment of irony here, right?
And it's another way of saying,
you have no idea who you're talking to, do you?
This man fails to recognize Jesus for who he is
because this man fails to recognize his own need.
And if you don't recognize your own need for Jesus,
it's going to be almost impossible for you to recognize
the significance of Jesus.
And this man is standing face to face with the Son of God,
and Jesus is ready and willing.
We know from other encounters,
Jesus would be ready to give him the keys to the kingdom.
If only he would ask.
And this man essentially is saying,
can I just get some advice?
Can I get some advice?
So one sign that we're in spiritual danger
is when we start seeing Jesus
as merely a source of advice or wisdom,
but we don't really feel any need for salvation,
any need for mercy.
So, you know, the question is,
if you don't feel that,
why would you even give someone like Jesus
a second thought?
It's a kind of offshoot of the luxury
of not really having to think about
our need for salvation.
I'm good.
I don't really need much.
So that's the first thing.
The second sign that we see in this question
that this man's in danger
is that he clearly believes
that he can do something to earn God's blessing.
And, you know, we can say we don't believe this,
but all of us in our hearts do.
I teach this every Sunday,
and yet I'm constantly catching myself
actually believing
that I probably can actually earn God's blessing,
if I'm really honest.
This man says, what must I do?
You know, when you're wealthy,
which means you have agency,
which means you're able to sort of take steps
to change your circumstances,
you know, which means you can go out
and spend money to meet your needs.
When you're able to do that,
it's easy to start to think
that everything in the world has a price,
that anything and everything could be acquired
if you just know what to do,
if you just know what the dollar amount is
or what the behavioral requirement is.
And it's easy to start thinking like that
about eternal life and heaven.
I don't know if you all read this,
but years ago, Warren Buffett,
you know, the billionaire,
announced that he was going to donate
85% of his fortune to charity.
He said, I'm going to donate 85%
of all my fortune to charity.
And all these people freaked out and said,
you know, that's so amazing.
They asked him about it,
and he said this.
This was the quote in the article.
Well, there's more than one way to get to heaven,
but this is a great way.
And I think that there's a sense
in which a lot of people in our culture
do believe that.
Somebody who gives that much money to charity,
surely God's going to look at that
and say, wow, that's one of the good ones.
So another sign that we're in spiritual danger
is when we begin thinking
that we can earn blessings from God,
that if we live the way God wants us to live,
if we have enough faith,
if we pray enough,
that we should expect
a reasonable amount of blessing
from God in return.
And how do we know we're thinking that way?
Well, it's when we reach a point in our life
where God is not doing what we want,
where God does not come through,
where we've prayed all the right prayers,
where we've come to church,
where we've done all the right things.
We have clearly indicated
that we have faith that God can do it.
We've checked all the boxes,
and God doesn't do it.
The longing in your heart
is the most godly longing you can imagine.
It's a longing that God Himself
should want for everybody, right?
It's biblical, the thing that you want,
and God doesn't give it to you.
Right?
You don't get the spouse.
You don't get the child.
You don't get the job.
And then you're left sitting there saying,
well, how could you?
I did everything.
I did all of my part for you,
and you're just silent.
You're not doing anything.
And we begin to get angry at God
and shake our fist at God,
and how dare you?
You know, for years,
I've been living for you,
and all I wanted was this one thing,
and you couldn't do it.
That's how you know
that you've begun to believe
that we can earn.
What must I do, Lord?
So the phrase,
you owe me,
is the exact opposite
of have mercy on me.
In terms of meaning,
it's the polar opposite.
Have mercy says,
I need something from you,
but I don't deserve it.
You owe me,
says,
I demand something from you
because I do deserve it.
Right?
So that's the second sign
that we're in danger.
The third sign
that this man's in danger,
that we might be in danger,
is that he's after
what God can give him
instead of God himself.
He clearly wants eternal life.
My life is going really well
in this life,
and I just, you know,
the one thing
that I haven't quite
taken care of yet
is what's going to happen
in the next life.
So I've got to make sure
that's,
I've got to cover that base.
Okay, teacher,
what do I have to do
to get eternal life?
Now, I think this is really hard
to see in our own hearts.
I think it can be very hard
to know if we want God
because of what he can give us,
or if we want God
for his own sake.
Because, of course,
there are lots of things
that we should rightfully
expect God to give us, right?
I mean, it's right.
A part of being
in a relationship with God
is to want God
to give us the things
that God can give us.
We want God to bless us.
Of course we do.
We want God to soothe our anxiety
and give us peace in the storm.
We want God to guide us
in our decision-making,
major vocational junctures.
We want to know,
God, do you want me
to go this way in my company,
or do you want me
to change and go over here?
Do you want me to live here,
or do you want me to live here?
Do you want me to marry this person,
or do you want me
to marry this person?
We want God to speak
into those things.
We want God to provide for us.
And it's right
to want those things from God.
But it's very easy
for us to begin treating God
like a kind of
divine vending machine.
You know,
you need something,
you come to God,
you pray,
you get it,
thanks God,
and then we kind of
go on our merry way.
And we begin to see God
like a vending machine
rather than a heavenly Father.
As someone who's there
to meet our needs
rather than somebody
who's created us
for a relationship
with himself.
And it's really hard
to know the difference
in your own heart.
Often,
the only time
we really know the difference
is when, again,
we don't get the thing
that we want.
And then we have
that really hard decision
confronting us,
do I still want to be
in relationship with God
if He's not going to give me
this thing that I want?
Would I take God
without the thing?
That's how we begin
to know.
But if we've begun
to kind of do this,
if we've begun to say,
you know,
I want advice from Jesus
but not salvation,
I just want to know
what I have to do
to get blessing
from Jesus,
and really,
I'm more interested
in what I can get
from God
than having an ongoing
relationship with God.
If those are true of us,
then we're in major danger.
And if that's true of you,
then wealth really is going
to be incredibly toxic
for you.
It's going to have
a horrible influence
on your heart
if those things
are true about you.
It's going to be
very dangerous.
It's going to be like
radiation in your home.
You know?
Asbestos,
spiritual asbestos
in your home.
And so you're in danger.
And so then the question becomes,
well, what can we do about this?
What can we do about it?
And of course,
the real question,
the real question is,
what can Jesus do about this?
Because right there,
if we're in danger,
we know that our only hope
is Jesus.
And so in Jesus' response,
we begin to see
an answer to that question.
Jesus responds first
by saying what the man expects.
Jesus says,
well, you know,
you know the commandments.
And he lifts off
five of the commandments.
You know,
and the man is ready
with an answer.
Well, yeah,
I know the commandments.
I've kept these commandments
as long as I can remember
is essentially what he says.
But Jesus is setting him up.
Right?
And then Jesus says
the thing that starts
to get at this man's heart.
He says, okay.
And you can imagine
Jesus sort of saying,
you know the commandments.
And the man says,
oh, yeah, I know them.
I've kept them.
Great.
All right.
And Jesus,
you can imagine Jesus
kind of turned away.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
One more thing.
I want you to sell
all that you have.
I want you to give it
all the way to the poor.
And I want you
to come and follow me.
And that's the heart.
That's the heart.
This man leaves sad,
but he can't do it.
Now, you read that
as a Christian
and you say,
well, what does this mean?
Does this mean
that the only way
to follow Jesus
is to sell everything
that we have,
give it all away?
Maybe.
What I think's going on here
is Jesus is directly challenging
the three issues
that we just looked at.
This man says,
hey, I want your advice,
not your salvation.
In this statement,
Jesus is saying,
you don't just need my advice.
You need me
to become the center of your life.
And in order for me
to become the center of your life,
the thing that is already
at the center of your life
needs to be displaced,
and that's your self-sufficiency.
And you could say,
oh, yeah, yeah,
I'll follow you.
But the only way
to know for sure
whether or not
I'm actually
the center of your life
is for you
to actually get rid
of the thing
that is at the center
of your life.
Take away
your self-sufficiency.
Put yourself
in a position
where you have no idea
what you're going
to eat tomorrow.
And then you'll know
whether or not
I'm at the center
of your life.
That's what you need.
I need to become the center.
This man says to Jesus,
what do I have to do
to earn God's blessing?
And in Jesus' response,
Jesus is essentially
saying to this man,
there's no possible way
you can earn
anything from God.
You know,
by calling this man
to get rid of his wealth,
he's exposing the sin
in this man's heart.
Notice, by the way,
that when this man
asks,
what must I do,
Jesus says,
well, you know the commandments,
and he doesn't list off
all the commandments.
He only lists
five of the commandments,
the what we would call
the kind of social commandments,
the commands that have to do
with our relationships
with other people.
Notice he did not mention
the first commandment.
What's the first commandment?
Have no other gods
but me, right?
And as it's been famously said
by Luther and others,
Martin Luther and others,
all sin
and all breaking
of commandments
is essentially
a breaking
of the first commandment.
Right?
So this man says,
I've kept all the commandments.
He says,
well,
except the first one.
Have no other gods
before me.
This man thinks
he's lived a good life
and probably has,
but he worships
a different God.
His God is his wealth.
His God is himself.
And then the third thing
that Jesus is doing
is he's saying,
you don't just need
what God can give you.
You actually need God himself.
And again,
this is why he says
to this man,
sell all that you have,
give to the poor,
and come and follow me.
It's very easy to say
that you love God
and that you're in it
for a relationship with God
when you're surrounded
with abundance.
But as I said earlier,
what happens
if you lose all of that?
What happens
if you don't get
the thing that you want?
What happens
if there's another
major stock market crash
and you lose your job?
What happens
if, God forbid,
you actually decided
to sell all that you have
and give it away?
What happens then
to your relationship
with God
when you have to wonder
whether or not
you're going to eat again?
Do you still want God
in your life then?
or not?
So, in a nutshell,
Jesus is inviting this man
to leave behind
a life of self-sufficiency
and to put himself
in the position
of total dependence
on Jesus
to provide for him.
He's inviting him
to receive the kingdom
like a child would.
He's inviting him
to cry out in the temple,
Lord, have mercy on me,
a sinner.
And he's saying,
I need to become
the sinner of your life.
With me,
it's an all-or-none deal.
And, of course,
this man refuses
because he says,
or it says in the text,
he's extremely rich.
And so, he refuses.
And that's the Bible's
way of saying,
that's Luke's way of saying,
this is too great
a sacrifice
and the man can't
bring him to do it.
The sacrifice
is too great, Jesus.
I'll give it some away
but I can't give it all away.
It's too much.
It's too much to ask.
The sacrifice
is too great.
And here's the hard truth
that we need to confront.
Every single person
in this room
would do the same thing.
As much as I would like to say
that I would respond
differently to Jesus,
not true.
If none of you were around
and it was just me and Jesus
and there was nobody else to see,
I would probably say,
thanks but no thanks.
I prefer things
the way they are.
Where you're an accessory,
you know,
you're an app
on the operating system,
you're an advisor.
And this is why people say
in this passage,
then who can be saved?
What?
So Jesus says,
what's impossible with man
is possible with God.
Now what's he talking about?
Well, he's talking about the gospel.
He's talking about the gospel.
You know,
there's two rich young rulers
in this passage.
There's the rich young ruler
that we've been talking about
and then there's Jesus himself.
Jesus is a rich young ruler.
Jesus has all the wealth
because everything in heaven and earth
actually belongs to him.
All of this man's wealth
actually belongs to him.
Jesus is at this point
fairly young
in his earthly ministry.
And talk about rulers.
Jesus is the king
of the heavens and the earth.
All authority
belongs to him.
He's the ultimate
rich young ruler.
And yet we have
this amazing contrast
where this man
refuses to sacrifice
this little bit of wealth
that he thinks is his
for the sake of Jesus.
He says,
that's too great a sacrifice.
He goes away sad.
He can't do it.
But the gospel says
that Jesus was actually
willing to sacrifice
all of his wealth
and all of his power
and all of his status
and all of his dignity
and even his own life
for us.
The gospel says
that when we look at Jesus
we say,
it's too great a sacrifice.
I can't do it.
But when Jesus looks at you
he says,
that sacrifice
is worth it
a thousand times over.
I would do it again tomorrow.
You're worth it.
My Father in heaven
is worth it.
Right?
And so we see
Paul says in 2 Corinthians
chapter 8 verse 9,
For you know the grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ
that though he was rich
yet for your sake
he became poor
so that you by his poverty
might become rich.
that's the gospel
that this rich young ruler
needs to hear.
And this kind of change
that is needed in us
can only happen
when the truth of those words
hit home in our hearts
and we begin to realize
that sacrifice
the willingness to give
everything away
has already happened
on our behalf.
Whatever we have
at the center of our lives
whatever you currently have
as the center of your life
as your operating system
as the sun
in your solar system
I guarantee you
it does not love you like that.
I guarantee you
it will not sacrifice
for you like that.
And this is why
Jesus is the only one
worthy
of being at the center
of our lives.
So the question
that I hope
we can sort of
think about
as we move on
in the service
is what does sit
at the center
of your life?
And how do you know?
You know
is God at the center
or is God
an accessory add-on?
Is Jesus Lord and Savior
or is Jesus
an advisor and teacher?
You know
is God an app
or is He
the operating system itself?
Is God the sun
in your solar system
or is God
orbiting around
something else?
You know
one of the only ways
to know
how central
wealth has become
is when we have
an opportunity
to give some of it away.
So that's why
we talk about
something like
the home campaign
as a major
spiritual opportunity.
As my wife
Laura and I
as we have talked
about this
we have sort of
hit that place
where we're having
to figure out
what role
does this play
in us
and what difference
is it going to have
on our life
by giving it?
And that's the place
where you began
to see how central
something has become
for you.
So it doesn't matter
to me
as much
how much
we raise.
The thing that matters
most is that
everybody is able
to be a part of this
and that everybody
has the opportunity
to give sacrificially
at a level
that makes us
question
and clarifies
what is really
sitting at the center
of me.
Because in the gospel
we have this opportunity
to recenter our lives
away from our own
self-sufficiency
and on to Jesus.
Let's pray.
Lord we thank you
for your word
and we thank you
for the encounter
with this man
and I confess
that I see
so much of myself
in this man.
and Lord
we see here
why we need you
so much.
We see what we need
from you Lord
which is not just input
but we need
a Copernican revolution.
We need you
to displace
dislodge
forcibly remove
with a crowbar
the things that sit
at the very center
of us
and to become
the center
to sit on the throne
to realign
our orbit.
Lord we pray
that we would be
the kind of community
moving forward
that is centered
on you
and that that would
be a blessing
not just to us
but that that would
enable us to be
the kind of blessing
that we want to be
to those around us
in this city.
Lord that that would
spill out into love
and spill out
into reconciliation
and spill out
into justice
and spill out
into evangelism
and spill out
into healing
and spill out
into all of the things
that we hope
will happen
as we call
the city
our home
that you would
make your home
in us.
We pray this
in your son's
holy name.
Amen.