Twelve days ago the sun rose on a beautiful day in these United States.

- The cloudless sky was a rich shade of blue.

- The air was crisp and fresh.

- The lush, green growth of summer was still around us - even as life was

beginning to move to the rhythms and routines of a new school year.

- Life was not perfect on September 11 - but most would agree that in many

ways, life was good.

- The day dawned on a nation at peace, on a people enjoying the fruits of

prosperity.

But then life was cruelly and violently disrupted by evil, death and destruction.

- In the midst of life we found ourselves suddenly and powerfully confronted by

the ugly reality of terrible evil and hatred.

In many ways we are still struggling to come to terms with this treacherous attack, this dreadful disruption. We are stunned by the magnitude of evil, and we worry about what lies ahead. The forces of terror have cast a shadow across our land, and our easy confidence has changed to uncertainty and even fear. The tumbling stock market is only the most obvious sign of our confusion and anxiety. Within my own heart I have felt the chilling touch of life - threatening evil (as have many of you).

And yet, dear friends in Christ, though the times be uncertain, and though evil be threatening: we do not retreat into gloom and doom, we do not slide into timidity and despair.

Today, in a world still shaken by dastardly acts of evil, we lift up and celebrate LIFE.

Brothers and sisters (and I do not use those terms lightly), we gather today to lift up goodness in the face of evil,

- to affirm love in the face of hatred

- to announce hope in the face of despair

- to shine light in the face of darkness

- to proclaim peace in the face of fear.

We dare to do so - and we must do so - because we gather in the name, and in the presence, of the God who IS the Lord of Life, the Author of all Goodness, our hope, our strength, our peace.

Whenever we worship we celebrate Life - our new life in Christ. Yet this is especially true today, because today is a special day of Affirmation. Today twelve of our members will be confirmed in Christ - they will affirm their faith in and commitment to their Lord & Savior. Today is a significant day for these twelve - but not for them alone. Today can be a day of affirmation for us all - a time to affirm our commitment to what is good and right & true, a day to confirm our own living relationship with Jesus Christ.

So what can we affirm this day? What can we say for sure about this life we share?

A) We affirm our baptism into Christ - we celebrate our life as children of the Most High God. We rejoice that nothing can ever separate us from the love of our Gracious Father. No evil, no terror is stronger than God.

B) We affirm that God is Lord of All - not just God for some of us, some of the time - but the Almighty, Creator of Heaven & Earth. There is only one God - the maker of us all: the God of Americans & Arabs & Israelis & Afghanis - one God who's got the whole world in his hands.

C) And we affirm that God's justice is for all. God hates evil & cruelty, and speaking through his prophet Amos, God proclaims his steadfast opposition to injustice: "The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their deeds". (let the wicked take notice) and let justice roll.

D) We also affirm that God's love is for all. We don't believe in a God who just loves some of us - or who loves us only when we do good. We affirm that "God so loved the world (the entire world) that he gave his only Son, to die for us" (all of us).

D) To say "YES" to the Living God is to say "NO" to all that is ungodly. Our affirmation carries with it a renunciation: The confirmands will be asked this question: "Do you renounce all the forces of evil, the devil, and all his empty promises?" In these days that question takes on a heightened urgency, does it not? All of us need to learn to say "NO" to anything that destroys life or distracts us from our true life in Christ.

F) The "YES" we say to God speaks more than a mere consent to be loved - it speaks our commitment to follow. The liturgy for confirmation puts flesh and bone on the "YES" we speak to God. Consider the commitment:

(P) You have made public profession of your faith. Do you intend to continue

in the covenant God made with you in Holy Baptism:

to live among God's faithful people,

to hear his Word and share in his supper,

to proclaim the good news of God in Christ through word and deed,

to serve all people, following the example of our Lord Jesus,

and to strive for justice and peace in all the earth?

When we say "YES" to God,

we say "YES" to consciously identifying with the community of God's People,

YES - to faithful participation in worship,

YES - to announcing the Gospel: in our words & lives,

YES - to imitating Christ, humbly serving all people,

YES - to becoming instruments of God's justice & peace in a broken & dangerous

world.

So you see that to affirm our life in Christ is no small thing, no easy thing, but truly a very worthy thing.

In the Prayer of the Day this morning we made a most appropriate request of God:

"Set us to our tasks in the work of your Kingdom, and help us to order our lives by your wisdom." You and I have godly work to do - and we need God's wisdom to do it.

Today's Gospel contains a parable about wisdom. Jesus tells a rather disconcerting story about a dishonest manager - it's disconcerting because in the parable the master commends rather than punishes his dishonest servant. But remember, a parable is a story told to teach one thing, and one thing only - and the point of this story is not: "Dishonesty is sometimes the best policy."

You see, the manager is commended not for being dishonest, but for being shrewd and bold - for assessing the situation and acting wisely. Jesus concludes: "the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light". Jesus' focus isn't on the dishonest manager, it's on his own disciples. Jesus encourages his followers to be as vigilant and shrewd in their affairs as the manager was in his.

John Coffey comments: "It's as if our Lord said, "if only you would devote to God's business the same resourcefulness that the business leaders of this world devote to theirs! Christ calls us to take risks and to serve God with the same enthusiasm that we serve our own adventures." (I like that).

Jesus points to our lack of wisdom and resourcefulness as disciples. Too often, we are careless and thoughtless followers. Oh, we may have chosen the right path in life, the right faith. We're on the right side, we hold the true doctrines. But we're not following our course diligently or wisely.

Think about it: the hedonist is very creative in the pursuit of pleasure, while the follower of Christ becomes casual about his own soul. A golfer takes lessons, reads books, tries new equipment - and practices a lot, while the Christian neglects even to pray. A salesman becomes an ardent advocate and spokesperson for some new gadget, while the child of God rarely mentions the Savior of the world.

And still people wonder what Jesus meant by "Lukewarm Christianity"! Another time Jesus said, "Be wise as serpents and innocent as doves." Instead, too often we seem as innocent as serpents and as wise as doves - dumb birds!

Jesus knows it takes wisdom to lead a faithful life: it takes ingenuity and energy and decisiveness. Whatever else these terrorists may be, we know for sure that they are bold, shrewd and committed. We Christians must also be bold and shrewd and committed in doing God's will. (And there's a lot more of us than them, but...) Remember, all it takes for evil to prosper is for good men & women to do nothing.

Today we affirm and celebrate all that makes life worth living - all that is good & right & true. But it's not enough to pay lip service to what is true. We need to find the wisdom and the courage to live what is true. May we have the wisdom to see where Christ is leading, and the courage to follow.

And you who are about to be confirmed - you who are still at the beginning of your faith journey, you who didn't make the world what it is, but will have to live in it:

Go forward with open eyes,

Know that following Christ is a good choice, but not an easy one.

Know that loving others is the hardest thing and the best thing you can do.

Know that as you make this commitment, you are not alone - know for sure that you have devoted brothers and sisters in Christ who will stand by you, sharing your joys & sorrows.

Above all, know that greater than your commitment to Christ is Christ's commitment to you: his goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life.

Amen