New Series - Moving Musings 2014

So many of you know that in about two months, my husband and I will be moving... again.

As a United Methodist minister and military spouse, I have understood for most of my adult life that adjusting to change would be my most valuable tool. It's been 23 years since I graduated from seminary and 19 years of life as an Air Force dependent, and still, when it's time for the process to begin again, I am filled with all kinds of thoughts about what this life is like, including, "What, again?"

So this year I am going to submit random thoughts on what this kind of life means to me and, more importantly, what I am learning from it.

So stay tuned... I'm awake until very late most nights and hopefully putting these various rambling thoughts into words will make my life a little more peaceful.

I'm already working on the first post... here's a tease - The Long Goodbye.

Soon,

Deb

Sermon - A Parent's Parable

Fairchild AFB Chapel, WA                                                                    May 11, 2014

Luke 15:11-32

Last week we talked about two of the parables about being lost. The missing sheep and the lost coin were simple examples of how God is willing to seek, find and celebrate the lost coming home. This week’s lesson is a continuation of that story, but this time it involves a family, maybe one like yours or mine. This is one we can sink our teeth into.

This parable is perhaps one of the best known stories from the New Testament. People of all ages recognize it as the parable of the Prodigal Son. Prodigal means wasteful or extravagant spending, and so when we call it by that name we automatically set up a hierarchy among the characters. Even so, each of us can identify ourselves or someone we know with each person. One of you is thinking, “I am a youngest child, too, so I understand how this little brother might want to get out of the shadow of that older brother and go out on his own."  Someone else who is an oldest child is thinking, "Yeah, the baby always gets the breaks.  My parents were never that easy with me."  And some of you identify with the father, and really know the joy of homecoming and what it means to have what was broken made whole again.

We often hear this story explained as a lesson in reconciliation. Biblical writers often write about our need to be reconciled to one another and to God. This parable highlights both of those interpretations quite well. 

Reconciliation happens when the younger son swallows his pride and comes home, willing to accept the shame he feels he deserves for his irresponsible behavior.  But instead of rejection, the son is welcomed, "with opened arms,” and we experience the father's joy and acceptance of his young son's homecoming as evidence of the kind of forgiveness that God and Christ call for us to model in our own lives.  We even see the father building a bridge between the two sons, attempting to reach a level of reconciliation between them, so that they might all be able to celebrate together.

Today I’m asking you to make broaden your interpretation, and look for another dimension to this parable.  It’s too simple to think of this as a parable of the prodigal son. This is a parable about a man with two sons - of a parent with two children.  This is not just a story about children with different views about life.  This is a story about a father – and a God – whose heart is so big that he never gives up on loving all those who have grown close to his heart.  It’s the father’s behavior that challenges us in our own lives.  For while we see this as a model story for how we should behave, (think repentance, forgiveness, and healing) we cannot stop there.  Reconciliation is just the first layer of this story. We must look deeper to experience the radical nature of the story Jesus tells, and who he calls us to be.

Jesus tells a story of a younger son coming home to open arms, with the father throwing a celebration dinner in his honor.  And as expected, the older son, and probably many listening to Jesus tell the story, were really incensed.  Can't you just hear them talking in the background – neighborhood gossip at its finest: "Can you believe this?  Look, at what he's done.  He's squandered away his inheritance.  He left his other brother with all that work, and used all that money to live who knows what kind of life.  And when things got bad, look at what he did.  He worked as a laborer... for a Gentile... taking care of pigs.”  As far as they were concerned, he had lowered himself so far down that he'd probably never get up. 

And then they’d say, "And the father – can you believe it? He just welcomed him back.  With open arms.  And a party to end all parties.  What I wouldn’t have given to be a fly on the wall.  I mean I guess it's OK to let him come home, maybe even to forgive him, but a party???  Are you kidding me? Why, it looks like that father is condoning what the kid has done. You won’t catch me acting that way!”

Whether we want to admit it or not, we feel some of those same things.  We feel the same sense of outrage that the older son must felt when he found out that how his brother had been welcomed home.  But we tend to sweep those uncomfortable feelings away and say, "Well, that just how God wants us to be... a forgiving and reconciling people, even when it's hard or feels unnatural."

But explaining away our discomfort is not enough.  Because that feeling also describes our relationship with God, the uneasiness that we sometimes experience when we begin to explore the forgiveness that God has given to us in the midst of our unfaithfulness.  Maybe we’re uneasy because we think we (or they) are getting something for nothing.  But this story makes it clear that that is not the case.  The forgiveness that we see here is not without condition. The father doesn’t pretend like it all never happened.

When the father explained to the older son about his brother's return, he did not say, "He's back to his old place in the family, with wealth and power restored."  No, what he said was, "Nothing has changed for you. But my broken heart has been healed.  I didn’t know if your brother was dead or alive, and now that he’s home, we have something to celebrate.  Come on, grab a plate – we’re having a party."  With forgiveness came consequence, and the need to take responsibility.  The younger brother’s place will become clear soon enough.

And God is the same with us.  We are NOT told, "I forgive you, so now I will take away all your problems."  Instead, we hear, "I love you and forgive you, and therefore I will be with you in all your hurts and your pains, and in the consequences of your sin.  You are not alone.  I will provide a community to support and care for you in the midst of whatever happens." 

The God whom we worship is a generous God…  One who forgives our sins, who stands with us in our joy, and holds us up in the midst of our pain.  But God did not just forgive my sin, or your sin, but also the sin of those who, to us, seem unforgivable.  Our God is not an either/or God, but is a both/and God. And even beginning to understand the scope of God's love and forgiveness helps us to know God in a new and deeper way.  We cannot draw the lines which define how God's grace is going to operate.  God will be whom God will be. The love that we share and the care that we give does not come easily – it takes constant practice of loving and forgiving others to make that feel close to natural. It’s what we pray about in the Lord’s prayer – your will be done.

I've been following this story for a couple of months, and it came to resolution earlier this month.  Cornealious "Mike" Anderson, of St Louis County, was convicted of robbery in 2000 and was sentenced to 13 years but was never told when and where to report to prison. He spent the next 13 years turning his life around - getting married, raising three kids,learning a trade. He made no effort to conceal his identity or whereabouts. Mr. Anderson paid taxes and traffic tickets, renewed his driver's license twice and registered his businesses.

Not until last July did the Missouri Department of Corrections discover the clerical error that kept him free and authorities went to his home and arrested him, sending a SWAT team to make the arrest early one morning. He had been imprisoned in the Southeast Correctional Center in Charleston, MO ever since. But on Monday, May 5th, the 37-year-old Anderson appeared in court to fight for his freedom, and Mississippi County Associate Circuit Judge Terry Lynn Brown ruled that keeping Anderson in prison would serve no purpose.

Judge Brown said that rather than Anderson being granted parole, he would get credit for the 4,794 days between when he was convicted and when he was arrested last year. The judge also lauded Anderson's "exemplary" behavior during his 13 years of freedom.  "You've been a good father. You've been a good husband. You've been a good taxpaying citizen of the state of Missouri. That leads me to believe that you are a good and changed me," he said.  "You are a free man," Brown continued, telling Anderson to go back to his family.[1]

And while this is not completely analogous to our story today, I think that this judge must understand what the parable is all about: what it means to balance justice with mercy, and reconciliation with paying for our mistakes.

The younger son was prepared to ask for forgiveness, to take whatever the father would grant him, no matter how little, to just feel the safety of home.  But the father ran out, and before the son even had time to open his mouth, welcomed him home, and showed him all the love that he held for him in his heart.  God has also run out to meet us, forgiving us before we even ask, and acknowledging it to us when we finally recognize it.  The life, death and resurrection of his son Jesus Christ open for us new dimensions on how we understand God and our own lives in their light.  They are the bridge that keeps us from being separated from God.

Whomever we identify with in today’s parable, from whatever slant we read it, in its entirety, this parable brings out different emotions and understandings about who we are as our parents’ children.  But it also tells us who we are as God’s children, and who God is as Parent of us all.  This is not just a parable about reconciliation.  It is also a parable about the Kingdom of God and how God wants us to live in it. We are called to be a people who live out extravagant generosity and radical hospitality, just as the father demonstrates here.[2]

I remember a story told by Tony Campolo, American Baptist minister and professor at Eastern College in PA.  He was in Hawaii preparing for a speaking engagement, and on the first night there he couldn’t sleep, so he went to an all-night diner.  About 3am a group of eight women came in, laughing and talking loudly.  He was able to learn a lot from overhearing their friendly conversation.  He learned that the women were professional escorts, finished with their night’s work and relaxing before going home.  He also learned that one of the women would be celebrating her 39^th birthday the next day. 

After the group left, Campolo got an idea.  He talked the diner owner and his wife into helping throw a birthday party for her the next night.  24 hours later the diner was decorated with streamers and balloons.  Customers who heard about what was happening stayed around to help with the surprise.  As the ladies entered the building, everyone inside shouted, “Happy Birthday, Agnes!”  Agnes was in shock.  People laughed together and hugged her, and after being reminded to cut the cake, she begged them to let her keep the cake as a reminder of the wonderful day.  “I’ve never had a birthday cake before – please let me take it home to show my kids.”

As shocked as they all were, they couldn’t think of a good reason to refuse her request, and so she left with the cake intact, holding it as if it were something precious. 

Tony broke the awkward silence in the room by saying, “Why don’t we pray?” and without hesitation prayed for Agnes in her life, asking God to bless her on her birthday, bring peace into her life, and save her from all that troubled her. After the “Amen,” the owner said, “You didn’t tell me you were a preacher.  What kind of church do you preach at?”  Tony thought for a minute and said, “Well, I preach at the kind of church that throws birthday parties for prostitutes at three o’clock in the morning.”  To which the owner replied, “No, you don’t.  There is no church like that.  But if there was, I would join a church like that. Yes, I would definitely join a church like that.”[3]

A man had two sons.  One went away and made a lot of mistakes, and one stayed home and was faithful.  And when the one who went away came home in disgrace, the father loved him and celebrated his return.  And when the one who stayed home was mad and upset, the father reminded him that his love is big enough to love both of them, and that any homecoming is worth all the celebration in the world

Let us pray:

Parenting God, you have watched and waited for us.  You have longed for us to “come to our senses,” to realize the joy of being members of your family, and of taking our own special place in that family circle.  In your love and grace you gather us to your heart, and call for a celebration!  As your church we express our thanksgiving in joyous worship, and welcome those turning and returning to you, even as you have welcomed us. We ask that you would teach us again and again what it means a church which walks with people because they are your children, proclaiming and demonstrating all of the love that you have showered on us though Jesus Christ, our Lord.  Amen.

Peace, Deb

---

[1] http://www.cbsnews.com/news/man-who-went-to-prison-13-years-late-ordered-released/

[2] Schnase, Robert, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, 2007.,

[3] Campolo, Tony, The Kingdom of God is a Party, Word Publishing, 1990, pages 3-9.

Sermon - Lost and Found

Fairchild AFB Chapel, WA -  May 4, 2014
Luke 15:1- 10

Lost and Found

Have you ever lost something? Of course, that’s a trick question because we’ve all lost something at one time or another. So let me ask a different way: Have you ever lost something important?  Again, a silly question, because even if it’s not something exotic or valuable, if we’re looking for it, it’s important, at least at that moment.  I could tell you a hundred lost and found stories, some of them sad, some of them silly. But none of them really measure up to the lost and found stories Jesus told that day, when he was caught hanging out with people from the wrong side of town.

Jesus told stories to teach lessons. But they are really more than stories – they multi-layered morality plays, used to teach theological lessons in everyday terms that ordinary people will be sure to understand. At this point in his ministry, Jesus already has a reputation for hanging out with the wrong crowd. Again and again, the religious leaders accuse him of welcoming and eating with sinners. But Jesus has countered this argument saying, the doctor needs to be with sick people, not those who are well.
Today, he tries to make them understand this concept in a different way. He tells three stories about lost-ness. The first two we will study this week, and we’ll tackle the third one next week.

Story 1: A man has 100 sheep, but one of them becomes lost. Jesus asks,” If this were you, wouldn’t you leave the 99 in safety to go and look for the one who was lost? And if you found it, wouldn’t you have a party with your friends and family to celebrate the lost coming home?”

Story 2: A woman has 10 precious coins, and loses one in the house. So she sweeps and cleans and looks high and low until the coin is found.  And like her shepherd friend, she invited her friends and family to rejoice over the lost being found. And then Jesus ends both parables with the following sentiment: “Joy breaks out in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who changes both heart and life.”

In each story, rejoicing takes place after both the sheep and coin are found.  Yet the Gospel is not about finding lost property or things, neither sheep nor coins.  Instead, it's about finding the least, the lost, and the last among us.  The sheep and coins are simply an analogy of the extent that God will go to find us and reach out to us.

Think about the joy you felt when you found something that was previously lost or missing. Maybe it was a favorite piece of jewelry or a well-loved book or maybe it was reconnecting with an old friend you hadn’t seen in a long time. There is the well of joy that springs up within us when that which was lost is found. In finding the lost, we become whole.

The good news in this passage of scripture is that God actively seeks us out when we have wandered away or are lost or absent.  It is almost as if God is incomplete when one of us is missing.  In God's eyes everyone has value!  Each one us! God will never stop reaching out for us! Regardless of what we have done or ever might do.  "We" might stop looking for our "stuff" or our "things" when they are lost, but God never stops looking and waiting for us!

We live in a what some call a throwaway society. When we lose something and can't find it, we generally replace it with something new.  We even give up on people when they disappoint us or fail to live up to our expections. But God never gives up on anybody. God doesn’t replace us, or stop looks for us. He doesn’t throw us away or write us off.

He goes out and finds us, and is filled with joy at our return. In theological terms, this is called repentance, which is not just about coming back, but about coming to or back to the life that God designed for us from the beginning of time.

In the 51st Psalm we hear powerful words of repentance from the lips of the psalmist as he prays to the Lord, pleading for forgiveness and restoration.  He says:

Have mercy on me, God, according to your faithful love!     Wipe away my wrongdoings according to your great compassion! Wash me completely clean of my guilt;     purify me from my sin!… Create a clean heart for me, God;    put a new, faithful spirit deep inside me! Please don’t throw me out of your presence; please don’t take your holy spirit away from me. Return the joy of your salvation to me    and sustain me with a willing spirit (Psalm 51: 1-2, 10-13 CEB)

These are words from one who knows a loving and forgiving God.

The writer Paul confirms God's undying devotion in reclaiming us as he writes to his friend and fellow sojourner Timothy:

 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength because he considered me faithful. So he appointed me to ministry even though I used to speak against him, attack his people, and I was proud. But I was shown mercy … [because] “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”… (1 Timothy 1:12-13, 15 CEB)

Both stories in today's Gospel tell us that God will never give up on us.  They remind us that when we turn our lives over to him, there is rejoicing in Heaven.

We could say that God is the untiring Pursuer who will never give up the hunt, until we turn and accept being scooped up in an embrace of Holy Love.  There is nothing we can do to keep his extravagant loving care from us except to run away.  Our own incompetence, our negligence, our rebellion, our misuse of talent and resources, not even our selfishness and sinfulness can keep God from seeking and welcoming us when we come back to his waiting embrace.

There is nothing we can do to detour God from loving us.  Like the shepherd leaving the 99 behind and the woman diligently searching for her lost coin, God will not give up on any of us.  God welcomes home all who turn to him, even when we or they are considered unworthy of the gift.  God loves each one of us with a love so big that it more than fills this room, this base, this state, this planet.

The evidence of this is the most extravagant gift of all -- the gift of his Son, Jesus.  His life and his ministry, his death and his resurrection are an deliberate demonstration of how valuable we are to God. They are witness to how far God will go to search out those who are lost, inviting us back into relationship with him and one another.

John Newton, writer of “Amazing Grace,” spent part of his life as a slave trader, transporting them from Africa to the Caribbean and then to the  Colonies in America.  Born in England, his mother died when he was seven.  Away at school until age 11, John then joined his father's ship, living the life of a seaman.  He described his early years as continuous rounds of rebellion and indulgence.  Eventually, he served on several ships that worked on the West African coast, collecting slaves to sell to visiting traders. He later  captained his own slave-trading vessel. His actions contributed to the buying, selling and transporting of some of the 6 million African slaves brought to the Americas in the l8th century.  All of this from the writer of one of our most beloved Christian hymns.

So when John Newton mentions "wretch" in the first verse of his hymn, he knows what he’s talking about – he means himself.  And yet, as the hymn says, all can be redeemed by the grace of God.  In 1748, when all appeared lost during a stormy voyage returning to England from Africa, Newton began reading the Thomas A. Kempis' book, Imitation of Christ.  Between the message of Christ’s love contained in this book and the crashing of the waves of around him, Newton believed the Holy Spirit sowed the seeds for his eventual conversion and personal commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.  And without even thinking about what he was saying, he prayed this simple prayer, “The Lord have mercy on us.”

This was the turning point in his life.  He remained a slave ship captain for several years, improving conditions for the slaves on his ship.  He held worship services for his ship's crew each Sunday, but soon knew that he could no longer contribute to such cruelty, and instead became a strong and effective crusader against slavery.  He saw that before his conversion he had been lost in sin and blind to the truth of the Gospel.  Newton found that even in a prayer of desperation, almost without meaning it, God answered.  His sins were forgiven – once and for all.

When we are lost, any of us, God has already been looking for us. Our being found often comes because we are willing to identify ourselves as one of God’s children. When others are found, we are called to recognize them as members of our same family. We are called to love them with the same love God has for them – lavish, gracious, undeserved love represented by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see.”

The Christian life seems to have two distinct parts: the times when we recognize all that God has given us, and then the times when we convey that message to others, not just in words, but in the ways we live, each and every day. We live in a society which frames “Them versus Us” conversations at every turn. But Jesus knew something that we have to work hard to learn… There is no THEM … it’s only US.

These parables ask us understand that church is not just the place where we worship but the people God wants us to be. And to be those people, we are called to turn around and go back to the place where we started… sitting at the feet of Jesus, and anchored in the heart of God.

Next week we'll continue with this theme, looking at one of the most recognizable parable Jesus ever told, the one we call "The Prodigal Son."

Let us pray:

Gracious Lord, You who are the Good Shepherd, grant us a compassion and care that reflects who you are and who you have created us to be. May we be a people who welcome and encourage others to live a life of faith.  May we have the courage to seek out all who may have wandered away from your love, who feel alone, and those who seek to know you but don’t know where to start. Remind us daily of your great love for us, and give us the grace to receive all into our lives who wish to know of measure of your peace.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

If it's spring, it must be almost time to move...

As April approaches, I realize that in a little more than three months, we'll be packing it all up and moving ... again. On Tuesday, my husband and I celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary, and we realized that many of these celebrations have been filled with discussions of new houses, jobs, friendships and the process of moving. Remarkably, this will be the 11th move since we married.  11 new jobs, 11 new houses, 11 new addresses, and only twice could we make the drive from one place to another in a day (GA to AL, and RI to VA). Every other time, it's required a lot of coordination and manipulation. This time will be no different.

This is the first time that we will be returning to a place where we have previously lived - one of our favorites. And to make it more exciting, we will be once again moving overseas to live in Germany. We don't have exact dates yet, but we should be there by the end of July. We are excited to know that some of our friends are already there, and others will be coming this summer. I'm trying to think about the lessons I need to apply to this adventure.  Here's what I've come up with so far.

1 - There's a lot I already know. We've done this before, so I think we're a little better prepared to know what's ahead.  That includes deciding what to take and what to leave in storage, while preparing for three different shipments at the same time, and wrapping up things here. I have a basic understanding of the German language, so I can not only ask someone how much something costs, but also understand when they tell me. I am prepared to read a German map and navigate German roads and public transportation. I will no longer be so afraid to go into shops and stores by myself, because if I try to communicate in broken German, people will help me out.

2 - I have a lot more to learn. I'm being much more diligent about learning more German before I go. I'm going to try to venture out and do some exploring, even if my husband has to work. I have friends in other towns in Germany and in England, Belgium and Spain, and if I can, I'm going to have lunch (or more) with each of them. I'm going to make the most of my time "across the pond," because this opportunity hardly ever comes twice in a lifetime.

3 - It's going to be different. I had a great experience before, and I'm sure this one will be awesome, too. But it won't be the same. Even the change of one person can make a situation totally different. Mix in lots almost all new people, and being ten years older, and it will look and feel like a whole new experience. I'm sure if I assume anything, it should be that nothing will be the same.  And that's OK.

4 - Good things will happen if I am prepared to be an agent of grace. Everyone reacts differently to change. Last time, I really counted on the grace of others to help make me feel comfortable in unusual surroundings. Now I need to be prepared to do the same for others. It's good to know that there will be a few recognizable faces, but there are also new friends to be made, and great experiences to be had. It's all about attitude.

Making this list will help me in dealing with all of the challenges that are before me. By the fall, we will be getting settled into a new home, with a new job, a new worship community, new friends and new experiences... I know this because, no matter where we've moved or what's been in store, these things have all been true, and they will be true again.  God is good, all the time!

Peace, Deb

Lessons from "The Monuments Men"...

I have only seen the movie, but I am quite enamored with the story of the Monument Men. The movie shares the story of 8 soldiers and one museum employee, but in truth almost 350 men and women worked to right the wrongs created by "the greatest theft in history."  In fact, I am so intrigued, that I have requested the book from several library systems, both in print and electronically. Apparently others are also intrigued to read more about it.  I am currently 166 of 176th in line for the 29 copies in the library system.

Just a little background: The Monuments Men were art, architecture and culture experts who were charged by the US President with finding, recovering and returning precious art objects when it became evident that the Nazi regime was removing (stealing) them from private collections, museums and churches. They did all of this as members of the US, French and British Armies, and as private citizens. They did this with only the resources they could scrounge up for themselves. They did this when almost every superior officer they encountered told them 1- no one would tell them what they could and could not blow up, and 2 - works of art were not worth risking a man's life. And yet they were relentless in their pursuit of millions of the world's most classic works of art.

Have you seen the Mona Lisa, Michelangelo's David or the Madonna and child statue at the Church of Our Lady in Bruge, Belgium? Have you every visited a major museum in the US - in Washington, DC or Chicago or Minneapolis? If so, you have benefited from the work of the Monument Men.

This wasn't the best movie I have ever seen. But it has probably made me think more than most. And it has inspired me to read more, to know more, to talk more about their mission and their successes and how they have affected me.

I'm thinking that this is also the way I should be living out my faith, taking on tasks and ministries which may not seem like my responsibility, but doing it for the greater good, and because it's the right thing.

At the end of the movie, President Truman asked the main character if it was worth it, loosing good people all in the pursuit of recovering art.  I'm pretty sure that's the question many ask about why we go to Haiti or the Sudan in the midst of natural and political crisis, why we open our churches for sleeping as people transition from homelessness, and why we love outside out comfort zones.

Is it worth it?  When I think of the sacrifice made of my behalf, all I can say is, "It's the least I can do."  Now, all I have to do is go out and be faithful to the call.

Peace, Deb

"What Clooney has crafted in The Monuments Men is a movie about aspiration, about culture at risk, about things worth fighting for. I'd call that timely and well worth a salute." - Rolling Stone Magazine

The Monuments Men - Official Site

The Art Army - Harvard Magazine
The True Story of the Monuments Men - Smithsonian.com

A time for every purpose...

Sometimes life just gets away from you. Things come up that are unexpected. You make decisions, and then the premise on which those decisions get made are challenged. In the end, you feel unsettled, unsteady, and a little teary. You wonder, "Did I make the right choices?"  "Was there something I should have done instead?" or even the dreaded "Who can I blame for life taking a difficult turn?"

With that question, we often lay the blame for our unexpected life on God. Because, in truth, there is sometimes no one to blame. There is just life, with its twists and turns and multiple outcomes. So whether it's career questions, health scares, or difficult relationships, every once in a while, we just have to accept that things won't progress the way we expected.

It's at those times that I remember the scripture from Ecclesiastes, chapter 3, made famous to the religious and irreligious alike by singer Pete Seeger and the 1960's rock band, The Byrds.

 1 For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:

2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
    a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
    a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
    a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
    a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
    a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
    a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
    a time for war, and a time for peace.

If we think, as people of faith, that God's love for us will protect us from trouble, sickness, doubt or death, then we misunderstand who God is. If we think, as people who have no faith, that God is a mixture of Santa Claus and Aladdin's magic genie, then we have mislead about what God's relationship has been with God's people throughout time.

I know that my current situation is par for the course. If there have been fewer troubles than normal in my life, I feel blessed. Or maybe it's not that there are fewer troubles, but that I see challenges as opportunities to grow and serve, rather than as a curse on my life. If I am not handling these changes very well right now, then I ask for prayers for me to see God's presence in the midst of the challenge, and to be reminded that I am not alone.

In his book, Where is God When it Hurts?, author Philip Yancey calls suffering "a problem that won't go away" and "the gift that no one wants." I don't really think of my current state as one of suffering, but I do feel a kind of burden at many the uncertain circumstances that surround me right now.  Yancey reminds us that at the times when things are going well, we don't remember that we need God, but when things take a turn for the worse, we feel as if God has turned away from us or slammed a door in our face.

But in reality, pain can be a gift.  It tells when things are going wrong. And it is one of the ways that we are reminded that this life is not be lived alone. Family and friends help us to bear the pains and disappointment that are normal to life. They are one of the ways that God's presence is made real for us, and as we are loved and cared for, we understand more fully the circle of life ... for everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose in our lives.

Many of you are in a place similar to mine. Your parents are getting older. Cancer or chronic illness is rearing its ugly head. You are separated from many of the people you love. Times of change are coming closer and soon life will enter a new phase.

We hate change. We do everything we can to avoid pain. But, in reality, both change and pain remind us that we are alive and moving forward in life.

So embrace the experience before you. Live and love to your fullest possibility. Receive the inevitable changes as an opportunity to grow and serve. And know that God is right beside you, present in friend and stranger alike, and helping you in any ways that you are willing to receive.

And if things are going really well for you right now, be that one who holds others up in the midst of their needs, and the changes that can come when least expected.

Peace, Deb

Sermon - Jesus Didn't Teach to the Test

Epiphany 2 – January 19, 2014 Audubon Park UMC, Spokane, WA
Matthew 5:1-12

Raise your hand if you have taken a class in Organic Chemistry. Now raise your hand if you failed said class… oh, good, it looks like I’m in good company. But I will tell you today that failing that class taught me one of the most important lessons of my life, and it wasn’t about chemistry at all. At the beginning of the semester, our professor had given us a study guide he said would prepare us to take the “winner take all” final exam. So we worked in groups to make sure we could answer every question. We studied these guides day and night and went into the exam with plenty of scrap paper and our calculators at the ready. What we received was the shock of our lives… a 100-question multiple choice test with the little bubble answer sheet. Have you ever started an exam and felt like you were going to lose your breakfast? Yeah, it was that bad.

We were offered the opportunity to come back at 12:30 to get our grades… the room was almost full. The teaching assistants handed out index cards with our test and lab grades, final exam grade and overall grade for the class. I had a weak C going in. I made a 59 on the test, which meant I failed the class. There was lots of wailing, which I’m sure the professor expected. And he said something that I only began to understand almost ten years later when I was in graduate school. He said, “I don’t teach to the test. I teach for you to understand the broad concepts of organic chemistry so that you can apply them in whatever ways are appropriate. If those of you who failed had spent as much time trying to understand that as you did trying to game the test, you would have understood that this test was actually easier than expected. Some of you will change your major today. For the rest of you, when you take this class again next semester, remember this lesson. It’s about learning chemistry, not about taking the test.”

Jesus didn't teach to the test, either, even though we often act as if he did. We try to figure out the fastest, easiest way to get into the Kingdom of God. We memorize the Ten Commandments, and we try to figure out which rules we really have to keep and which we can skirt around. We align ourselves with theological personalities and institutions which make us feel good about ourselves. We hold people to a high standard that we often cannot meet ourselves. We judge other by our expectations, not in ways Jesus taught. We are most often like the rich young ruler, who told Jesus that he loved God and neighbor with all his heart, but could not find it in himself to give up his fine lifestyle to follow Jesus on the way.

Today’s sermon focuses on the implied question that Geoff left us with last week: What does it mean to be a citizen of the Kingdom of God?  The picture is not pretty. The journey is often difficult.  Many have suffered for taking Jesus’ instructions seriously. Most end up in places they never expected. Are we willing to follow Jesus on the way, or do we just want to do enough to get our final reward?

I could have used any set of Jesus’ sayings to illustrate what Kingdom citizenship is about - the Lord’s Prayer or the farewell discourse from John’s gospel are equally as helpful. But today I want us to look at the Beatitudes as Jesus’ alternative to checklists of behaviors which will guarantee us admittance into the heaven. The Beatitudes show us the way God’s reign operates, the way reality looks when seen from God’s perspective.

As middle class Americans, we don’t often want to see ourselves as poor, meek or hungry, because when we hear about that, we think that makes us the people that God has forgotten.  And we often don’t want to be people of mercy or peace, because we don’t see those as being places of authority or power. And we certainly don’t want to be people who are persecuted for the sake of our faith, because it might feel like our faith didn't really do us any good after all.

But if that’s the way we think about the Beatitudes, then we are looking at them all wrong… as those who live outside of the Kingdom, not as members with privilege. If we take them in the context intended, the Beatitudes show us what the world really looks like.  If we want to know what it means to be “blessed”, we will have to risk letting go of our limited, distorted view of reality and step into this vision of Jesus.   It is only in our poverty, our grief, our limitedness, and our hunger that we can fully know God’s reign. It is only in pouring out ourselves for others through mercy, love and peacemaking that we can experience true brother- and sisterhood with others. It is only in taking the risk of rejection that we can know how important the love of God really is.

So let us step on to the mountain and begin to understand who Jesus is calling us to be.

In the movie “The Blind Side,” Sandra Bullock plays Memphis housewife Lee Anne Tuohy, adoptive mother of Baltimore Ravens tackle Michael Oher. The book it is based on documents the power of NCAA football within our society. But within this exposé, Michael Lewis shares with us this remarkable story of a black teenager who becomes a son and brother to this white affluent family.

In the movie, the first time Leigh Anne meets Michael, he is walking on a dark, rainy street, carrying all of his possessions in a plastic shopping Walmart bag. She drives by him, thinking for a minute or two about passing him by, but eventually stops to give him a ride. When she learns that he no place safe to go, she brings him to her house and makes a place for him to sleep on the couch. When she figures out that he is going to be a permanent fixture in their lives, she makes up a bed for him in her guest room, and promises him better accommodations in the future. “This is mine?” he asks. “Yes, sir,” she replies. “I never had one before,” he answers. “A bedroom to yourself?” she asks. “A bed,” he replies.

And thus is born a new family. When her friends get over their shock, they commend her for changing his life. Her reply is simple, “No, he’s changing mine.” When they question whether or not it’s safe to have a black teenager living in her home with her daughter and son, she picks up the check for lunch and never looks back.

In his book, I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness, to the Blind Side, and Beyond, Michael Oher said this about being a part of the Tuohy family, written in part to clear up assumptions people had made about the relationship between him and his adopted family.

I didn’t start by staying every night… But the Tuohys starting asking questions.  Leigh Ann wasn’t a lady who just lets things go. She asked about my family, and while I wasn’t ready to open up, I did like how she was concerned about me… I liked that she and Sean noticed me. I didn’t feel invisible when I was with them… They didn’t crowd me with emotion, but that also made sure I knew I was always welcome. They didn’t treat me like I was fragile, or with curiosity… They treated me just like they treated everyone else, and I think that helped me feel so at home there so quickly (pp 138-9). 

The Tuohy’s always wanted Michael to have a relationship with his birth family, and in his book Michael talks about all the ways that they tried to help make that happen. Some things went well. Michael was able to continue to include his mother and several of his brothers in the successes of his football and academic careers. But in the times when the burdens of poverty and addiction came barreling in, Michael has always been able to count on the Tuohy’s as his family.

In their book, In a Heartbeat: Sharing the Power of Cheerful Giving, Leigh Ann and Sean Tuohy give me some hope. They operate under the Popcorn Theory.

‘You can’t help everyone. But you can try to help the hot ones who pop right up in front of your face.’ The Popcorn Theory is about noticing others. It starts with recognizing a fellow soul by the roadside as kindred, even if he doesn’t belong in your gated community and, at six foot five and over three hundred pounds, is the biggest piece of popcorn you ever saw. It's about acknowledging that person’s potential and value. It’s about seeing him, instead of looking past him (p 1-2).

I think about this real life relationship between a homeless teen and an affluent family. This family committed themselves to be with this young man for the long haul, officially making him a member of their family when Michael was 19.  And I ask myself, could I have done the same?  Will I have the courage to take on that kind of responsibility when called to do so? Will I even recognize the opportunity when it comes, or just go on to live my quiet, comfortable life?

In his article, “Four Reasons Churches Stink at Transformation (and What We Can Do About It)” Sean Palmer argues that for being a people who are called into a life-changing ministry, we don’t do change very well.   The New Year is the time when many of us take on resolutions for change… I bet that like me, you have decided to “do better” this year… eat better, exercise more, read the bible in a year, spend more time with your kids, or less time on your computer… pick your poison.  Statistics say that by February, all of hopes and dreams for a new, better life will be a faint memory for most of us.

Mr. Palmer, who trained as a fitness instructor, gives us four ways to get more fit. These ideas work on our spiritual lives as well as our physical ones. And they play right into what Jesus was talking about in how to live faithfully in the Kingdom of God.

Less discussion, more work:  If you look up “spiritual growth” on Amazon.com, you’ll get over 81,000 books which have been categorized as related to helping people grow in their faith.  The same topic garners over 25 million hits in .26 seconds on Google.com. I have a stack of books in my office which I have been meaning to read, and bookcases full of others which I have read, or at least skimmed, mostly designed to bring me closer to God and to the life he intended me to live. Maybe the same is true for you. We want there to be a magic bullet, the one true book (or article, or podcast or sermon) which will answer all of our questions. Or give us the best, shortest, foolproof method of communicating with God.

But just because a diet pill has sold 20 million bottles doesn’t mean it’s going to help me lose weight. It only means that millions of other people are looking for the same shortcut to fitting into clothes that used to fit. It’s easy to be lured into their promises – “but wait – there’s more”… No matter if it’s in the physical or the spiritual world, thinking, talking and reading will not get us to a place where change can happen. Instead, it’s all about the work that we put into the process that makes the difference.

Conversion is a process:  Some faith traditions teach that there is a miraculous change that comes over us at the moment that our faith becomes real to us. Whether we call that being saved or being baptized, it is true that the Holy Spirit makes a new claim on us and puts us on a new path. But that is just the beginning of the process. I often tell newly baptized or confirmed people, “This is not graduation – this is just the first step on the journey of faith. So don’t judge yourself or others by someone else’s standards. Listen to how God is calling you to live in the Kingdom. Even if you take two steps forward and one step back, you’re still going further that someone who is content to stay in the same place all the time.”

It’s easy to get out of shape:  I’m sure you have noticed that this train keeps moving.  Even when we tired.  Even when we’re afraid.  Even when we don’t like where we think it’s going… And if we get off at a stop to take a break, it’s hard to get back on the in the same place as before. Either we get distracted and take a path to a place that distracts us from our journey, or we don’t have the stamina to start where we stopped. If you play a musical instrument, you understand this phenomenon. Stop practicing for even just a little while, and it takes a lot longer than you thought it would to get back to the same place. My husband took up his hobby of playing the tuba after taking a 13 year break. Let’s just say nothing said “I’m sure I need something from the grocery store” like seeing the tuba come out of its case for the occasional practice session. It wasn’t until he found a small group to play in that his playing (and our enjoyment) improved. It turns out that working toward a goal and being with others makes staying in shape worth the work.

It won’t be easy. It won’t be painless. It won’t ever be over:  The Beatitudes are the living example of this philosophy. Understanding the power of God’s blessing often means that we are in need of something that is bigger than ourselves. When we are in positions of power or wealth or in control of our own destinies, then it is hard for us to experience, or even see the need of the blessedness of God. But when we are poor – in spirit or in wealth, we are able to recognize and need God in a whole new way.

A middle class family stopped off at a Wendy’s for lunch on a Saturday, and noticed an older man paying for items from the 99 cent menu from small change from his pockets. He had gathered enough for a small hamburger and drink, when the mother took a $5 bill and asked the clerk to give him whatever else he wanted for that amount of money. Soon he took a tray with a couple of burgers and fries and a drink to his table, after stopping by to thank them for their generosity. The mother was brought to tears when he uncovered his food, and then bowed to say a blessing over his food before gobbling it all down. They went to Wendy’s to get something healthy to eat. But once inside, they realized that they also had another kind of hunger met – the desire to be present with others in the midst of their need.

This Sunday, United Methodists observe Human Relations Day, a time to make a renewed commitment to social justice and work with at-risk youth.  We celebrate those ministries in conjunction with the Martin Luther King, Jr. federal holiday deliberately, because Dr. King’s work was all about social justice, and all about bringing the Kingdom of God to its fullness right here in the USA. Dr. King started as a normal preacher, committed to teaching and preaching the Word and taking care of people. But it did not take long for him to realize that taking care of people meant something more than just being with the people of his congregation.  He began to speak out in support of those whose civil rights were being violated, and in the end it cost him his life. Dr. King’s work was never intended to be a political movement, but drew in those who knew that legal and governmental change would be required.

Three years ago the MLK memorial opened on the Mall in Washington, DC. And on the same day that we visited this memorial, we also visited the FDR memorial, just down the path, and the Air Force Memorial, just to the south of the Pentagon. I was struck at the similarities between them – not in the way they look, but in the quotes that they shared in order to help people know what each stood for in their work for the country – and for the Kingdom of God.

From FDR: In these days of difficulty, we Americans everywhere must and shall choose the path of social justice… the path of faith… the path of hope… the path of love toward our fellow man.

From MLK: Make a career of humanity. Commit yourself to the noble struggle for equal rights. You will make a greater person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in.

At the Air Force Memorial we saw a display that explained the The USAF motto: “Integrity First, Service Before Self, Excellence in All We Do”.  One explanation seems to be on point today: “Service before self is that virtue within us all which elevates the human spirit and compels us to reach beyond our meager selves to attach our spirit to something bigger than we are.” General John Jumper

It is possible that we look at the Beatitudes and see them as a burden, or maybe as an impossible dream. But maybe that’s what Jesus wanted them to be… an opportunity to shed our old behaviors and expectations and move on to something more important than we could ever have imagined being a part of.

I end today with a reading from Eugene Petersen’s version of this passage from The Message. They are a plainspoken reminder of who God is and who he is calling us to be.

3 “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.
4 “You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.
5 “You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.
6 “You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.
7 “You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for.
8 “You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.
9 “You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.
10 “You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.
11-12 “Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.

Peace, Deb

Thanks to the following resources which gave me clarity in my creative process:

“Get the Picture?” by John van de Laar at the website Sacredise: Loving God, Loving the World. 

I Beat the Odds: From homelessness, to the blind side, and beyond by Michael Oher, 2011

The Blind Side - Movie starring Sandra Bullock, Quinton Aaron & Tim McGraw, 2009
In a Heartbeat: Sharing the Power of Cheerful Giving by Leigh Ann and Sean Tuohy, 2010
“Four reasons churches stink at transformation and what we can do about it,” by Sean Palmer at the website Sojourners: Faith in Action for Social Justice.