Mission Yearbook: Armstrong calls for beloved community

From the pulpit earlier in Shelton Chapel at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, the Rev. CeCe Armstrong wondered aloud about the bonds among Jesus’ close friends, especially Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Armstrong, Co-Moderator of the 226th General Assembly (2024), was the preacher for the MidWinter Lectures, in its 81st year at Austin Seminary.

“They probably did ministry together,” Armstrong said of the four, drawing on John 11:38–44, the raising of Lazarus, as her preaching text. “Whatever others thought, they were friends, and they did the work God called them to do together.”

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Photo by Markus Winkler via Unsplash

Earlier in John 11, Martha goes to meet Jesus and tells him that he waited too long to make his appearance. Jesus reminds her who he is — the resurrection and the life. “She relied on their long-lasting relationship and agreed with Jesus’ claim, but is disappointed in the timing of it all,” Armstrong said. “How many times have we neglected to see God at work because it didn’t turn out like we had planned it?”

When Mary finds Jesus, she kneels at his feet, weeping, and tells Jesus that Lazarus would be alive if Jesus had only arrived sooner. “God is compassionate and loving, and so Jesus cries,” Armstrong noted. “Isn’t it strange how those outside the situation always seem to have a solution to your problem? They are always talking about how the situation could have been different.”

Lazarus is entombed and a stone blocks the entrance to the cave. When Jesus calls for its removal, Armstrong, quoting Martha, says, “there may be a stench.”

“Jesus was not concerned about that stinky smell,” Armstrong said. “Smell or no smell, she would see the glory of God.”

When Jesus prays, it’s “not a plea for a miracle” or a “woe is me” prayer, Armstrong said. “Jesus’ prayer was a prayer of understanding that the glory of God would be revealed. It was a prayer of thanksgiving. Jesus says, ‘I know that you always hear me, but I have said this so the crowd would believe that you sent me.’”

Instead of asking Lazarus, “would you like to come out now?” Jesus speaks “with conviction and power,” Armstrong said. When Lazarus emerges still bound, Jesus instructs those nearby to unbind him. He was speaking to “the nosy folks standing nearby,” Armstrong said.

“Friends, I don’t know if anybody has told you: you are the ‘them’ Jesus was talking to,” Armstrong said. “We are the ‘them’ in this text.”

“Could Lazarus take his own strips of cloth off with his hands and his feet bound? No. It is the requirement of the beloved community,” she said. “It is our responsibility to take grave clothes off, to tend to the ones who are bound.”

“We get so caught up in the miracle of the dead man coming to life,” she said, “that we don’t hear Jesus’ command to take the grave clothes off.”

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The Rev. CeCe Armstrong

“We must be willing to be on this journey to serve,” as Armstrong and her fellow Co-Moderator, the Rev. Tony Larson, are. “We can’t see something without saying something.”

Turning to protests in Minneapolis and other U.S. cities, Armstrong said Jesus “is expecting us to care for ourselves and to help others when we can. Now would be a really good time to revisit the Matthew 25 text. Helping those in need is being obedient to God and upholds your responsibility as the beloved community.”

“Wouldn’t you want help taking your grave clothes off?” she asked. “Why wouldn’t you do that for someone else?”

Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service (Click here to read original PNS Story)

Let us join in prayer for:

Katherine Babicz, AVP Financial & Investment Planning Professional, Trust Services, Presbyterian Foundation
Margaret Boone, Project Manager, Special Offerings, Administrative Services Group

Let us pray:

God of the young and the old, we thank you for the opportunity to learn and grow together. Continue to stretch our boundaries, that we may ever grow into the people you have created us to be. Amen.

Mission Yearbook: GA Moderator asks mid council leaders to lead ‘R.E.S.C.U.E.’

The Rev. CeCe Armstrong’s “Leading the R.E.S.C.U.E.” was the closing message of the recent Mid Council Leaders Gathering as part of the final day’s worship service, a fitting sending for leaders in the PC(USA) heading back home to continue their ministry in the communities they serve.

The Rev. CeCe Armstrong, Co-Moderator of the 226th General Assembly (2024),
preaches Wednesday during closing worship for the Mid Council Leaders Gathering.
(Photo by Rich Copley)

Armstrong, who together with the Rev. Tony Larson is Moderator of the 226th General Assembly (2024), used Psalm 71:1–6 to preach on a ministry of R.E.S.C.U.E., for “receive,” “expose,” “send,” “challenge,” “utilize” and “enlist.”

Armstrong called Psalm 71 a “senior citizen’s prayer,” noting that “through stress and longing, the author trusted God and affirmed trust in God” throughout youth and into adulthood. “The poet praises God because God’s answer was certain to come,” Armstrong said. That “total commitment to God echoes how we get to this point in life with the positive outlook of joy in the Lord.”

“We can trust God for our future, but sometimes that’s hard,” she said. “You’ve just got to have faith, friends.”

Like the psalmist, when we’ve been rescued by God, “there’s a need to tell others of God’s grace and mercy,” according to Armstrong. “I know you’re in charge of a lot of stuff,” she told mid council leaders, “but can you steal away for a while each day and study God’s Word?”

We trust in God, and on that topic, Armstrong wondered if any in worship had bothered to check their chair for sturdiness before plopping into it. “You trusted it would hold together,” she said, “and we need to have that same trust in God.”

“We trust God, even if the rescue is from our own selves.”

The Co-Moderators of the 226th General Assembly (2024), the Rev. Tony Larson and the
Rev. CeCe Armstrong, help each other to remember their baptisms. (Photo by Rich
Copley)

Now that more of us are living into our 80s and 90s, “we tend to believe the longer we serve, the more effective we are, and that’s not true,” she said. “Find your replacement and train them as you go. Be the one who gets to sit back and watch the fruit of your labor. … Smell your roses while you can sniff.”

As mid council leaders, “we might have the arrogant thought we are responsible for rescuing those under our care,” that “we will save the people, the church and the denomination.”

“You can’t save nobody!” she said. “Jesus did that already.”

“Since God is a God of rescues,” she said, “let’s look at God’s R.E.S.C.U.E. plan.”

For “receive,” we are to “receive those who seek Christ,” she said, because “just as you did this for the least of these, you did it to me.”

For “expose,” Armstrong urged worshipers to “expose the wonders and mysteries of our triune God.” “I pray we will proclaim a relevant and righteous gospel. Stretch to expose the triune God everywhere. Find out who you serve, then meet them where they are.”

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Mid Council Leaders and fellow worshippers joined in several hymns, including "Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness" (Glory To God hymnal No. 291) at final worship of the 2025 Mid Council Leaders Gathering. (Photo by Rich Copley)

For “send,” she called on leaders to send people with hope. “Fall in love with these people over and over again, no matter how many times they break your heart. If you don’t love them, they can’t get what God has.” She defined supplication as “the way to never tire of the work. That’s why I tell people, ‘I love you and there’s nothing you can do about it.’”

Our many “challenges” are all the more reason to depend on God. “Know your labor is not in vain,” Armstrong told the leaders. “Don’t seek to be more successful; seek to be more faithful to the God who called you to this work.”

We must “utilize” every gift God has given us, Armstrong said. “God wants to work through us collectively, so listen to God, who still speaks in the silences.” The work “is not about you, no matter how much it expands or contracts,” she said. Leaders’ gifts “are the answer to prayers that have been prayed.”

We must “enlist” others “to assist on this journey,” she said. “God will send the help that will be the hands and feet of Christ.” It’s the “generosity of our siblings in the faith that helps make this work possible.” But “don’t expect scar-free ministry, for our risen Savior did not obtain that.” Rather, “walk with the understanding that God has you and has had you all the time.”

Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service (Click here to read original PNS Story)

Let us join in prayer for:

David Myers,  Director, IT Finance & Administration, Information Technology, The Board of Pensions
Lori Neff LaRue, Vice President, Education, Engagement & Church Relations, The Board of Pensions

Let us pray:

Loving God, open our eyes to those in need in our community. Give us courage to address their needs and show your love to all — today and every day. Amen.

Mission Yearbook: Rev. CeCe Armstrong brings joy and motivation to Presbyterian Youth Triennium

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Rev. CeCe Armstrong preached at the Presbyterian Youth Triennium in Louisville. (Photo by Rich Copley)

It would be foolish to expect the Rev. CeCe Armstrong to take to the stage without making some noise, and she made it clear that she didn’t want participants in the Presbyterian Youth Triennium to be shrinking violets, either.

“Are you ready to change the world?” Armstrong asked as she returned to the stage for benediction on the first day of the event.  “Go in peace and make some noise!”

Armstrong, the Co-Moderator of the 226th General Assembly (2024), preached during the opening night of worship at Triennium, a youth gathering that took place at the Kentucky International Convention Center in downtown Louisville.

For young people, Triennium was a revival and a chance to experience a reawakening, she said.

The worship service included an appearance by fellow Co-Moderator the Rev. Tony Larson who, early on, joined with Armstrong to bring light-hearted greetings to the crowd. There also was plenty of uplifting singing from the Nettletons and others, including Armstrong, as well as prayer, a procession, and imagery and props to connect with scriptural and thematic references.

A group known as the Energizers got worship off to a fun start by teaching the crowd a series of dance moves for them to follow along with before the service moved into more traditional worship.

Armstrong gave an encouraging and motivational sermon based on Psalm 126 (A Harvest of Joy), and Acts 2:1–21, which focuses on the day of Pentecost. She also incorporated the Triennium theme, “As if We Were Dreaming.”

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A procession during the first night’s worship at Presbyterian Youth Triennium included some celestial props. (Photo by Rich Copley)

As Armstrong began the sermon, she noted that Triennium audiences have been told in the past that there is work to do, and today, “there is even more work to be done.”

But there is also the need to dream.

“We were born to dream and to do work to change the world,” she said. “Now, you might dream alone, or you might do some collective dreaming. You may even face nightmares, but at the end of the day, you ought to wake up and dream.”

Delving into the psalm, Armstrong pointed out its multiple references to “shouts of joy.”

She then laid out three distinct times when shouts of joy are warranted: Restoration, renewal and resurrection.

“When one feels renewed by work that God has done, it is as if there is a new heaven and a new earth and the old has passed away,” she said before querying the crowd.

“Are y’all tired of doing something the way you’ve always done it?” she asked, receiving plenty of affirmations.

In life, it’s important to move out of God’s way, she noted, and to “let go of what was and make room for the new.”

She also talked about the resurrection of Jesus, adding that “the future is safe and sound because we have a God who can do all things but fail.”

Later, Armstrong turned to the biblical account of the day of Pentecost and the transformative power of the Holy Spirit.

“Because the Holy Spirit had come, these scared and terrified disciples were renewed and restored,” Armstrong said, noting that the Holy Spirit makes room for growth, development and the expanding of potential.

When the Holy Spirit arrived it was a noisy process, with a loud rushing of wind, Armstrong said, before asking the crowd to contemplate what kind of “noise” or difference they’re making in the world.

“What kind of noise are you making or are you making any noise back home?” she said. “Can anyone even hear you? ... Are you making yourself available for others to know you exist? If you're not, then there must be a change in your behavior. ... You must be present in the community to let them know you are here. Be loud so people can experience the love of God, the grace of Jesus Christ, and the sweet communion of the Holy Spirit.”

She added, “You are responsible for making noise and once that is done, you will see a new thing. You will recognize that you were born to dream.”

Videographer Alex Simon contributed to this story.

Darla Carter, Communications Strategist (Click here to read original PNS Story)

Let us join in prayer for:

Brianne Merten, Operations Associate, Operations, The Presbyterian Foundation
John Merten,  Data Entry, Funds Development, Operations, Administrative Services Group

Let us pray:

Gracious God, you have faithfully walked with us through all these years. As we look toward the challenges ahead, lead us in the ways that you would have us walk. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘If I showed up at your church, somebody other than Jesus would be happy to see me’

Co-Moderators, Stated Clerk team up to share their insights during worship at the Presbyterian Center Chapel

October 13, 2024

From left, the Rev. Jihyun Oh, the Rev. CeCe Armstrong and 

the Rev. Tony Larson sing a hymn during worship Wednesday 

in the Chapel at the Presbyterian Center in Louisville, Kentucky. 

(photo by Rich Copley)

With Ephesians 2:10 as their scriptural basis, the co-moderators of the 226th General Assembly, the Rev. CeCe Armstrong and the Rev. Tony Larson, joined the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Rev. Jihyun Oh, to lead a recent hybrid worship service in the Chapel at the Presbyterian Center in Louisville. One by one, the three recently elected denominational leaders spoke on “Created,” “Called” and “Commissioned.”

Created

Put your hand in front of your face, Armstrong suggested. Inhale and then exhale, blowing air at the hand. “Do you feel anything? That means you have breath in you, and breath means you’ve been created by God,” she said.

Genesis 1 tells us that everything God created is good. “When we consider being created by God, it’s all right if we declare, ‘That’s good!’” Armstrong said. “Friends, I want you to acknowledge that you have been fearfully and wonderfully made and to acknowledge that you have been made good. That ought to make you walk different.”

“I encourage you to be a good creation of God and wear the smile that proves that’s so,” she said. “To God be the glory for the great things God is doing.”

Called

Larson spoke about a recent time and an unlikely place to which he and his wife, Heather, were called: a dive bar in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where a trivia night had been organized.

During the two hours of the trivia contest, people would walk in and out of the bar, Larson said. Some hadn’t had particularly good days. One person told him, “I’m Catholic. I go to Mass every Sunday. People fuss at me all the time. They say, ‘but we see what you’re doing on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.’”

“I go every Sunday, and I get forgiven, but the only person happy to see me there is Jesus.” Then he asked Larson, “Would I be welcome in your church?”

“I said, ‘Of course you’d be welcomed at our church,’” Larson said, telling the man about the ministry of Trinity Presbyterian Church of Surfside Beach, South Carolina, including “our ministry for those in recovery, our ministry to children and families, and our fundamental ministry to people who pick up from some place on the map at this stage of their life and come here and generally have no connections, no roots. They have left their roots behind, and we help those rootless people find roots in the church.”

“I just really get the sense talking to the two of you,” the man replied, “that if I showed up at your church, somebody other than Jesus would be happy to see me.”

“We don’t know,” Larson said of why we are called. “We are called to be in spaces where we are, and to be the very presence of Christ to whoever might be there. Thanks be to God.”

Commissioned

For many people in the worship, the term “commission” has a specific meaning, said Oh, who started her duties as Stated Clerk on Aug. 5. There are commissions, both judicial and administrative, and commissioners to assemblies “who have been given power and authority to speak on and act on behalf of a particular body of people.”

We can think of “commissioned” as “being given the power and authority to speak on and act on behalf of Christ Jesus our Lord, who has called us to be salt and light in the world,” the Stated Clerk said.

Being commissioned can also mean “being taken off of standby, being taken off the sidelines to places where God is calling us.” Ephesians 2:10 calls us “God’s handiwork,” which got Oh to thinking about “what it means to be commissioned to that work. The person creating that handiwork is thinking about a particular context or purpose when the work is commissioned. There is a particular thing we are to be doing in the world.” There can be “a sense of joy that emerges from that commission.”

“We are created, called and commissioned. Thanks be to God. Amen.”

Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service

Today’s Focus: Co-Moderators, Stated Clerk team up to share their insights during worship at the Presbyterian Center Chapel

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Larry, and Inge Sthreshley, Mission Co-workers serving in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, World Mission, Presbyterian Mission Agency 
Mindi Stivers, Financial Assistant, Presbyterian Women 

Let us pray

Mighty God, we bless you for the rich soil in which your church is nourishing the seed of your gospel. Continue to transform our lives, congregations and communities so that all will know us by the fruit we bear. Amen.