Sermon: The Seventh Sunday of Easter The Sunday after Ascension Day

May 17, 2026

Barb Marshall

Psalm 68:1-10, 33-36 1 Peter 4:13-14, 5:6-11

Acts 1:6-14 John 17:1-11

Focus: How do people begin to discover God?

On May 14 th we celebrated Jesus’ Ascension. Jesus had appeared before the disciples several times after his crucifixion. Sometimes he appeared to them on the road they traveled. Other times it was behind

closed doors. Thus, they knew Jesus was alive. Until the appearances began, the disciples did remain together and prayed. They often did what they saw their Master do. They waited for the empowerment

that Jesus promised. Together, they had to heal through grief at losing a friend, anger at those who killed him, guilt about deserting him in the garden and fear about what could happen to them. They had to empty themselves of all inner distractions and to forgive so that they could be filled with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit of which Jesus spoke.

In today’s reading from the Book of Acts, we learned that Jesus was with the disciples when he ascended. In fact, they asked Jesus, “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” He replied,

“It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea

and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” The disciples watched as Jesus was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight into heaven.

From that point on, the disciples and certain women, including Mary, the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers, began to spread the Good News by word and example, in prayer, and in healing.

Let’s fast forward to today!

Who helped you discover God and God’s love in your life?

For me it was my maternal and paternal grandmothers who I accompanied to church services on a regular basis. One grandmother was Catholic and the other was Episcopalian. It is also important to

note that my parents had me baptized as an infant. I imagine for many of you, it was also a family member or friend who first introduced God to you.

According to an article I read recently in Maryknoll Magazine, Sister MaryLou stated that very few people discover God on their own. No one comes to Jesus because they read his biography and decided that

Jesus is the Savior. Nobody can experience the Spirit of God in a vacuum. Every one of us came to believe in Jesus because of people we love and trusted who loved and trusted Jesus. John’s Gospel lesson for

today is the prayer that Jesus offered just before departing for Gethsemane on Holy Thursday night. Jesus began with praying for his disciples to whom he had entrusted his Gospel of reconciliation and

peace. He asked God to bless the ministry they would soon begin.

The ministry of Jesus’ disciples has continued through the centuries. God’s love is passed on every time a parent teaches their child how to pray, every time a teacher helps a student understand a Gospel story,

and every time someone reaches out to another with the mercy and compassion of the Gospel Jesus. Today, we give thanks for those who helped us discover God and God’s love in our life. And we return the favor by sharing that same Word with someone else. When we are called to continue Jesus’ mission, the Good News spreads. Sister MaryLou tells the story about her work in Chicago’s Chinatown with immigrants from China. Sister MaryLou was a medical and social worker, translator and interpreter for the immigrants. One young couple had just arrived from China. The wife spoke no English and was

pregnant with her first child. She was very apprehensive. Sister accompanied the mother to each prenatal and postnatal doctor visit.

Her little girl, named Dorothy, was born with a heart defect. There were many medical visits until the child was old enough for heart surgery, which was successful. After each medical visit, Sister would

drive the family home and say, “God bless you and Jesus help you.”

One day the husband looked at Sister MaryLou and said, “I don’t know who this Jesus is whom you bless us with, but for me, you are Jesus.”

Here at St. Patrick’s we do much to help spread God’s love to others. Our weekly worship services are open to all as well as social hour and compline on Wednesday nights. We have a twice monthly book and bible

study available via zoom. Seasonal Lenten and Advent enrichment programs are also available. Our mission work let’s others know we care as we follow the examples set by Jesus, his disciples, and now us.

We have a web page that explains what we do and provides a connection to us through zoom. We even have a virtual healing service available 24 hours a day on our web site.

Several members of St. Patrick’s and a couple others belong to a healing group called Compassionate Hearts. Our group was formed as we studied and learned about healing from The order of St. Luke. OSL

is a community of Christians who pray with people for healing by the power of the Holy Spirit and train people who wish to do the same. We normally meet twice a month on Saturday mornings. We have studied

and prayed together for several years. It is through this group that a Virtual Healing Service is available on our St. Patrick’s website. All of you who may be interested, are welcome to join us. See me, Paul LeClair,

Beth Marshall, and Pat Tilley for more information.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus leaves his followers to return to the Father with the commission to “teach…all that I have commanded you.” Jesus’ Gospel of compassion and justice remains constant. But to effectively

“teach” that unchanging Gospel often means changing ourselves and our expectations. We may need to refocus our vision, recalibrate our attitude, and learn the language of humility and understanding to be

effective teachers of his Gospel in our generosity and kindness to one another.

It is important that we do not forget to teach our children about God.

The message from the bible is quite clear. Proverbs 22:6 states that we need to “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Ephesians 6:4 states “Fathers, do not provoke

your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instructions of the Lord.”

At a Ministry Fair workshop in May of 2023, Rev. Linda and I went to a session on Identifying and Practicing our Baptismal Ministry. One portion we focused on was sharing the Good News by word and

example. The leader asked us to focus on ideas that would make our hearts “sing.” The ideas were not complicated and many we already practice here at St. Patrick’s. They are:

 Proclaim and Listen

 Be Present

 Listen and speak in Love,

 Online worship and in person worship

 Prayer Squares and Prayer Quilts

 Show love for All

 Music is powerful thanks to our choir, Rev. Paul and Karen Burke

 Retreats sponsored by the Diocese Groups like Daughters of the King

 Sermons

 Kindness

 Mission Outreach

 The Order of St. Luke – Compassionate Hearts

Jesus disciples were his presence and instruments in the world after the Ascension. He prayed that the words God gave to him would be given to the disciples. Now that challenge is up to us. We are Jesus’ current

disciples. It is up to each of us to shine and to keep our actions and words flowing so more and more people of all ages will know about God.

We have a wonderful musical event coming up on May 31st at St. Patrick’s beginning at 3:00 p.m. Singers from St. Patrick’s and Holy City will perform solos, duets, and ensemble performances of world music, pop, rock and Broadway show tunes. There will be a free will

offering to be shared between the two churches. This is a great opportunity to invite friends, family, and neighbors. We can spread the Love of God through music!

How did you learn about God? (Pause) God, help us to share what we have learned by mirroring God’s love! Amen!

Resources for this sermon:

 Connections for May 21, 2023

 The Healing Miracles in Acts of the Apostles, by Paul A. Feider, page 11

 The Bible RSV

 The Gospel According to John by Scott M. Lewis, S.J.

 Daily Guideposts for May 0, 2023

 Ministry Fair Workshop, May 6, 2023