Psalm 95 Mighty God of creation
John 4:5-42 Woman at the well

We’ve had a lot of hot days this summer! We are all told to ‘Stay hydrated’. Drink more water. It matters to have enough water. We carry around our water bottles. We appreciate a shower and keep chilled water in the fridge. Water is necessary for life.

About fifteen years ago, my husband Ron and I had the opportunity to visit South India. We were the guests of Church of South India and were there to visit some of the projects that Uniting Church in Australia was supporting through Uniting World. It was similar to the project for East Timor that we just saw on the video. In South India, we saw projects linked to Education, small business, recovery after the 2003 tsunami and other projects. One of many projects was for wells to provide water to some villages in the area south of Vellore in the south east. The wells needed to be very deep, but at last they now had a tap in their own village. So much joy.

A tap and water, right in their own village. By the time we reached the last village it was already dark. Very few houses had electric light so the headlights of our vehicle were left on so we could see enough for the ceremony of turning on their tap.

As an older white woman, I was a very rare and exotic visitor. Through an interpreter, they told me what access to clean water would mean for them. In good seasons, it was only a walk of a couple of kilometers to carry their water pots to fill from irrigation channels. But in the dry season, they had to walk much further. There were times when wealthy landowners refused to let them walk across their land, so their daily trip to carry their water pot on their heads was even longer. Even then, the water was often polluted. To have a tap, with clean water, in their own village was a miracle for future health. We have just watched the video about Timor-Leste. They too have to struggle to get clean water for their daily needs. We have taps in our own houses. Let’s not take this gift for granted.

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Matthew 17: 1-9

Our Scripture reading today was the amazing story of the Transfiguration of Jesus. As we just heard, Jesus went up a high mountain with three of his followers, Peter, James and John.

Today, let’s hear this story from the perspective of Peter. This was an important moment in his journey with Jesus but it wasn’t the only one. Peter had already been travelling with Jesus for several years. In Matthew chapter 16, the chapter immediately before this story, we read that Jesus asked his followers, ‘Who do you say that I am?’ and Peter answered ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.’ That was a very important moment for Peter. He was moving from following a man from Nazareth, a place not so far from his own home, to declaring that this was indeed God’s own Son.

Not long after this, Jesus began to tell his followers that he must go to Jerusalem, where he would be abused, and killed and would rise from death. Peter was very distressed to hear this and said, ‘”NO! This can’t happen!’ Jesus told him, ‘You don’t understand the things of God.’ Another very important moment with Jesus.

Within days of these important conversations, in Matthew 17, we read, ‘After six days, Jesus took Peter, James and John and led them up a high mountain.’ They were alone. Suddenly Jesus changed and became dazzling with light.

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Letter writing and receiving letters has always been important to me. When I was a child in Primary School, I had a penfriend in rural NSW and we wrote to each other for decades, although we only met once. When I first left home to teach in the country and was homesick, letters between my mother and me really mattered. Letters between me and my future husband Ron, written over several years when we lived in different countries, changed the direction of our lives from friendship to a long marriage.

These days, fewer people write real letters, which I find quite sad. Text messages can be great, and I use them all the time, but they are limited. And as for a string of emojis, that is not the same!

In the years immediately after the life and death and resurrection of Jesus, the followers of Jesus were beginning to spread into scattered communities. As new groups of Christians were gathering in places distant from each other, letters became important. The apostle Paul wrote letters to a number of communities and we can still read them in our New Testament. As Paul travelled, he met little groups in places like Rome, so he wrote a letter to the Romans. He visited the Christians in Corinth and later wrote at least two letters to the Corinthians.

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Matthew 18:21-35
Romans 14:1-12

Anyone who knows me knows that I am hopeless at maths. You will never find me as a volunteer at the sales point in the food pantry because it needs someone competent with adding up. I do less damage if I help in the Food Pantry Cafe where no money changes hands.

The Scripture for today uses the idea of numbers – numbers added or multiplied, enormous numbers or small numbers, numbers when you are keeping a score. It comes in a chapter that speaks of questions to Jesus about how to deal with conflict, particularly among followers of Jesus. What do we do when we disagree? How do we react when someone really hurts us, or offends us?

At some time or another, I expect that all of us have been hurt by someone. Perhaps a family member, a work colleague or neighbour. Maybe we have been cheated, or threatened, or abused, or insulted. Perhaps we have lived in danger in a war zone, or felt betrayed by a political party or by a partner. Sometimes we disagree with others about important issues, and things have turned nasty between us. Of course, there will be times when we have to admit that we have been the cause of the conflict, hurting others, and we are the ones who need forgiveness. Some of these are very great and troubling problems, and others are less so, but still painful.

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