"Desperate People" Mark 5: 21-34; Psalm 130

When I picked this title, I was thinking of Nevada Barr's comment about being desperate when she went to church.  Of course, I ended up using the quote in last week's sermon, so it's not doing me much good this week!  I sometimes have that problem when I do the newsletter and pick the texts for several sermons in a row -- I forget to segregate the different sermons when I start writing them.

When I read the Mark text, I wonder if the woman (and Jairus for that matter) had gone to other people hoping they could solve her problem.  I imagine if I had her condition I would be desperately going anywhere to see anyone who I thought could solve my problem.  I'm not sure if it matters or not (what do you think).  But, it certainly matters that Jesus is the one who healed her.

The Psalms are often a cry from seemingly desperate people to the God they hope will be faithful to them.  As I reflected on whether the woman had tried other people, I was reminded that of the Israelites in the wilderness, who turned away from God while Moses was up on Mt. Sinai because they were afraid and were willing to turn to anything in their fear.  I wonder if the Israelites had some sidebar psalms to offer up to other gods?

I landed on the idea of desperate people for World Communion Sunday, because I have this image of people all over the world who desperately need hope and change arriving at the Lord's Table, believing that this is the only place they can turn where they can discover real hope and change.  What are you looking for when you come to the Lord's Table?

Peace,

Richard

"What to Expect" Acts 6: 1-; Deuteronomy 10: 12-22

this is another sermon (like last week's) that I've been thinking about for some time. I find it hard to stay focused in a sermon that has been brewing for a long time.  So much time lends itself to too many ideas!

This might be a good time to give a shout out to Karl in Salt Lake City and Christie in Seattle, with whom I worshiped at two of the places mentioned in the sermon.  Not only were they both gracious hosts, but their willingness to talk about their church experiences helped me as I reflected on being in worship at the churches they now attend.  

The unanswered question in the sermon is what happens next for people who arrive for worship desperately seeking answers when they find answers.  Does that satisfy just in the moment?  How do we as a church help them grow into discipleship? 

It struck me that we have lost a sense of awe and reverence in our world today -- not just in the church context, but in most areas of life.  Maybe the sense that we can figure anything out takes some of the mystery and awe out of life; maybe we settle for what gratification we can find and never look beyond it; or maybe we so want God to be accessible to people that we de-emphasize the awesome nature of God.  For example, I want kids growing up in the church to view the sanctuary as a safe, welcoming place where they want to go to  worship God.  In creating that environment, however, I think I have not communicated the awe and reverence  that God deserves.

“What to Expect” Sept. 25, 2011; Acts 6: 1-7; Deuteronomy 10: 12-22; FPC, Troy; clergy Renewal series

Introduction: As I prepared for my during my Clergy Renewal time, I looked forward to the opportunities I would have to worship in different congregations and other settings. And, in fact, I worshiped on average at least once a week, although not every Sunday.

I thought I would be like a sponge – soaking up different styles of worship and sermons, gaining insights into how churches worshiped that would be helpful to me as a worship leader.

I discovered I was not much of a sponge; that when I left the each worship experience I had this feeling of met or unmet expectations. Instead of a sponge, I enter worship with expectations, and left with those met or unmet in varying degrees.

I began to ponder what expectations people bring to worship.

Why are you here this morning? What do you expect to happen that will make it worth having been here?

I have always found this passage in Acts to be a fascinating one. It takes place early in the development of the church. The followers of Christ are running around living out what it means to follow the resurrected Christ and the Hellenists challenge what they are doing.

The Hellenists, the Greeks, the outsiders, the ones who do not follow Christ critique the Christians and ask if they are actually doing what the followers of Christ should do. Turns out the Hellenists have expectations of Christians.

And these early followers of Christ do not deny the unmet expectations or dismiss them or argue against them. Instead, they recognize the truth of those expectations and make changes to meet them.

Move 1: Reflect for a moment about how the church can meet the expectations of those who arrive for worship.

a. People arrive seeking to discover the truth.

1. Nevada Barr, Seeking Enlightenment Hat by Hat (190-191): “I didn’t come to the Episcopal Church because I believed in the unbroken lineage of bishops or because I believed in the the god to whom they were said to have dedicated themselves. I chose the Episcopal church over a temple, mosque, or churches inhabited by Presbyterians, Catholics, or Baptists because it was close to my apartment and, the evening the whim came upon me to turn to God, the front doors were unlocked. I didn’t come to worship. I came because I was lonely, frightened and desperately unhappy.”
2. Gather to worship God as people who need God.
   b. Our worship needs to witness to the gospel.

1. Witness swears to tell the truth.
2. We gather to tell the truth.
3. To declare good news.
4. To announce to the world God's saving love that we discover in Jesus Christ.
5. To proclaim that by the power of the Holy Spirit god sends us into the world.
   c. Clergy renewal examples of discovering the truth.
   1. Lutheran Church in Salt Lake City; attended with a friend of mine from college; he is a lifelong Presbyterian and his wife has been a Presbyterian for many years after growing up Catholic; they have both been elders in the Presbyterian church, but too much internal conflict in their Presbyterian Church has led them to become Lutherans; or at least Presbyterian who are members of a Lutheran church!
   When I told my friend I wanted to go to the church he attends, he noted it would be kind of different. “Different?” I asked? “Well, they pray.” “We pray, too.” “Not like they do.”
   loose service; lots of coming and going; free flow of people coming in and out of the service (I even left and came back at one point!);
   We were there for confirmation Sunday, so things were a little bit different. When it came time to pray, they invited the confirmands down, and then they invited people to come down and lay on hands and pray for the confirmands; and since they normally offer that for anyone who needs pray, the minister invited people in need of prayer to go to the back of the sanctuary so others could lay on hands and pray for them.
   They prayed. Some out loud; some silently; some people stayed for the whole time; others went down and back; it went on for a chaotic 10-12 minutes you got to pray; left there believing that God was in their midst
   the service really did not work for me; I'm not sure I'd join there if I lived there.
   But anyone who left that worship that morning had to believe the truth that God was alive in their midst and answering prayer.
   2. Culpeper Presbyterian Church in VA. Formal. Liturgy a bit different. Instead of the minister preaching, people were sharing about the just completed mission trip. You know what it's like to show up expecting normal worship and something else is happening;
   I wasn't that interested in hearing stories instead of the sermon I wanted to hear, but then they told the stories. Stories that revealed how God had been at work in the lives of the people they served and in the lives of those who went on the mission trip. A tear or two was shed.
   The truth had been told – God is alive and at work.
   Every church develops its own identity in its worship. What do we people discover about God when they worship with us?
   Move 2: Role of members

a. McDonald's drive through; apparently during the morning rush they put a person in the drive through to take your order, instead of ordering at the big menu with the speaker. I find it hard to believe that it's faster talking to a person than a speaker, but I trust that McDonalds knows about efficiency.

I probably didn't help speed things up that morning because my curiosity overwhelmed me. “Why are you taking orders in person?” “Because it's faster during the rush time to do it this way.” “Really?” “Yep.” “how do people know what to order since they can't see the menu.” “Most people who come here know what they want. If they don't, I'm here to help them.”

1. some people are self-sufficient as they arrive for worship; they know why they are here; they know where to find what they need
2. they can find it for themselves.
   b. Others need help, and we are here to help them.
   1. Not a clear distinction between visitors and members on this issue.
   2. some of us who frequent these pews every week need help sometimes to hear the gospel.
   3. Some of the people who visit with us need guidance.
   4. We need to have others pray for us; we need that smile; we need to shed a tear in the company of people who understand

b. Welcoming people

1. Bellevue, WA church – 2500 member Presbyterian church; 3 traditional services and 2 contemporary services each Sunday morning; Leslie and I were there early so we probably mingled with 800 or more people, all of whom basically ignored our presence;
   we still worshiped; still heard God's word proclaimed; still celebrated the Lord's Supper; but we did so outside of the community that gathered there.
2. We gather to worship together. A smile is the starter. Look someone in the eyes.
3. Real conversation. Brief, but authentic.. Show an openness to those who are with us. Help them discover that gospel.

Move 3: More than the mechanics of worship; we worship God

a. Being Disciples of Christ in a Dot.com World (89): “One eccentric practice of the church is worship. Worship is an ineffective use of time and resources. Worship does not exist simply so the community can gather together, nor does it exist to meet our emotional needs.”

1. Worship is a God thing.

1. “Worship” comes from the Old English words meaning “honor” or “worthiness” and “to create”(Reaching Out without Dumbing Down, Marva J. Dawn, 76).
2. Create honor for God.
3. Witness to the gospel that saves, but also the God who brings us salvation.
4. God alone is worthy of our worship.
5. Deuteronomy – reminder of what's important; obey commandments; serve others; worship.
6. At times in Exodus we could be led to believe that the primary reason God leads the Israelites out of slavery is so that they can worship God.
   Move 4: Worship is about God means that worship is Counter cultural.
   a. Worship connects us with the God who is always critiquing and challenging our worldly ways.

b. Corporate worship in a world that often pushes self, self, self.
1. Greet one another.
2. Pray for each other. Share our difficult challenges. Invite others to celebrate with you.
3. Pass the communion elements to one another – gift of Christ for me, but also for that other person down the pew. We are connected in Christ.
4. Be in community in a world that preaches worrying about one's self first.
c. Time
1. I know, we shoot for an hour. I confess that sometimes when we have a whole bunch of different elements added to worship and we still get done in an hour I pat myself on the back and consider it a real gift to my worship skills that we somehow met the time allotted to worship.
2. Do we limit our prayer concerns because time is running short – yeah, sometimes, do.
3. Laura Noftle, a long -tenured member who died last year. One day she asked me, “why do you rush?” “what?” “every time we have communion you start talking faster the minute you get behind the Lord's Table. I know you are worried about time, but I don't care. I want to experience communion with God.”
4. time does matter; not because time is money; not because every minute has to have a productive purpose; time matters because it is God's time.
5. Our worship reminds us of that.
6. It's hard to quantify reverence and awe.

Conclusion: It is reputed that Karl Barth once remarked that people came to the sanctuary on Sunday mornings with one question: “Is it true?”

It is true that God loves us; that God sent Jesus Christ to save us; that Christ was raised from the dead;

How does our worship answer that question.

"What to Expect" Acts 6: 1-7a; Deuteronomy 10: 12-22

While on Clergy Renewal, I visited several churches.  In some, I was a complete stranger; in others, I had a prior relationship with the congregation.  I discovered that when I left the worship services, I had some sense that the service had worked, or not worked. or partly worked for me.  It made me realize that when I attend worship I have an expectation of what will transpire during that time.

What expectations do you have when you come to worship?  How do those expectations get me or go unmet?

I wonder what expectations visitors have when they arrive at our sanctuary?  Or the parking lot?  At one of the churches I visited I was greeted as I shut my car door in the parking lot.  An older woman must have figured I looked lost, or I looked like a stranger, or maybe she was just that friendly.  Regardless of why, she welcomed me before I even got inside the church.  Let me tell you, that made me much more receptive to what happened in worship and made me expect to have a good experience in worship.  I actually do not remember the sermon, but I did get invited to lunch with a group from the church.  no surprise, I suppose, that I recall that service as one of my best experiences of worship last summer.

The Acts passage notes the expectations of the early church.  It does not specifically deal with worship expectations, but serves as a reminder that when we gather in places that identify us as Christians, people have expectations of us.

The Deuteronomy passage reminds us of the importance that worship played in the life of the Israelites and the importance God placed on worship.  At times in Exodus the reader could be left with the impression that the sole reason God led the Israelites out of bondage was so that they could worship God.  Makes worship a big deal, doesn't it? How big a deal do you expect worship to be each week?

Peace,

Richard

Peace,

Richard

Reflections on "A Surprising God" Matthew 19: 16-30; 2 Corinthians 5: 12-21

I have been reflecting on this sermon topic most of the sermon.  It's highly anticipated moment floundered a bit in the chapel service.  In addition to having my notes in the wrong page order and jumping a page before working back to the original order, I did not feel like I was ready for the chapel service.  Maybe I was a bit scared of it.  This sermon seems a bit radical to me, at least in terms of pushing beyond the salvation question.  

Between services I add the bit about this is an important question, which somehow seemed to all me to preach the sermon more easily.  The sanctuary service sermon went much better, at least from my perspective. 

This is one of those sermons that I wish I could preach from a different angle for several weeks to really explore it, but I am not going to do that.

“A Surprising God” September 18, 2011; Matthew 19: 16-30; 2 Corinthians 5: 12-20; clergy renewal series

Introduction: The musical “Big River” details the escapades of Huckleberry Finn.

One of the songs is entitled “Do Ya Wanta Get to Heaven.” the chorus goes like this: “Looka Hear Huck, do you wanna go to heaven? do you want to go to heaven well I'll tell you right now. You better learn to read and you better learn your writin or you'll never get to heaven cause you won't know how”

Huck is given lots of advice, including not growing up to be a “loafer like your pappy” and “If you can't read your Bible, then you'll never get to heaven cause you won't know how;”

Widow Douglass and Miss Watson were “so regular and decent in all their ways” (sounds like they were Presbyterian)

Judge and Tom Sawyer were not above puttin in their two cents worth. Everyone in town, it seemed, had their idea of how Huck Finn ought to act or something he should do to get into heaven.

That was not the first time this question was asked. Historically, lots of things have been suggested for people to do so that they can get into heaven.

Perhaps you might have mentioned a thing or two over the years about what someone needs to do to get into heaven.

Move 2: Young man with many possessions has this question in mind when he approaches Jesus.

a. “What good deed must I do to have eternal life?”

1. Maybe you have wondered that once or twice yourself.

2. We certainly live in a world where many Christians ask that question.

3. Surely I am not the only one who has had someone ask “have you been saved?” or “if you died today, where you would you go?”
4. Or have seen the bumper sticker that reads “In case of rapture, this car will be empty” and wondered who would be left driving your car if the end of time arrived suddenly while you were out running errands!

5. Someone recently shared with me the story of a woman who lost her Bible. She frantically looked for it. As she looked for it, the real story came out – her hysterics were not for the Bible per se, but for the piece of paper in the Bible which had a statement detailing the day and time she was saved, signed by her minister; sort of her ticket into heaven.

b. Jesus returns the question with a pretty challenging answer – obey the commandments.

1. The young ruler must be a pretty good guy, or at least he has a pretty good sense of himself because he tells Jesus that he has done just that.

2. So what's next he wants to know.
3. I bet he soon wished that he had skipped that last question because Jesus pushes the envelope – not only obey all the commandments, but sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor.

the young man goes away knowing he has failed Jesus' test, and I suspect hopeful that he can find another way to get to eternal life.
4. In a way, Jesus seems to be on the same page as Huckleberry Finn's aunts and friends as he tells the young man the things he must do to get eternal life.

b. On the other hand, Jesus' tone and demeanor suggests that he will keep on raising the demands until a threshold is reached that the young man cannot pass.

1. If the rich young ruler had said, “okay, I'm off to sell my possessions to give to the poor,” I imagine Jesus would have had something else for him to do.

2. The point Jesus seems intent on making is that no one, the young man with lots of possessions, or anyone else can can achieve eternal life, at least of their own accord.

3. the question of salvation cannot be answered by mortals, it can only be answered by God.
4. Maybe, just maybe, the story of the young man who tries to figure out what he can do to earn eternal life will allow everyone, including us, to hear the surprising good news that God that sends Christ to save sinners, to save even us.

Move 3: During my Clergy Renewal time, I had the chance to read Love Wins by Rob Bell

1. In part, he argues that Christians have put too much emphasis on the question “Are you saved?”

2. He suggests that Jesus does not spend much time on that question.

3. Instead, Jesus emphasizes how to live our lives as his followers.

4. We recognize that in the exchange he has with the rich young ruler.

5. We have already noted that when the young man asks Jesus about getting to eternal life, Jesus puts forth some difficult challenges.
   
   
6. But we also notice that Jesus' answers direct the young man to consider how he is treating others.

7. Jesus recites commandments that dictate how we are to treat one another; then the great commandment that contains further amplification on how we are to treat one another; finally, Jesus tells the young man he has to show so much concern for the poor that he sell his possessions and give it all to the poor.

8. It is not only a seemingly impossible challenge, but it sends the message that the path to eternal life may not matter nearly as much as following Jesus into the world to serve.

9. In other words, Jesus shifts the question from “Am I saved?” to “Am I following my Savior?”

b. Bell also asks how we can believe in the sovereignty of God without believing that God will be true to those promise to save everyone?

1. In other words, when Paul tells the Corinthians that God is reconciling the whole world, is God true to that?

2. If we believe God is true to that promise, why are we so concerned about who is saved and who is not saved?

3. Or why do we have such trouble claiming that truth for ourselves.

4. It seems to me that the answer to those questions are intertwined.

5. To bolster our own uncertainty in salvation, we focus on the who is saved and who is not saved, usually including ourselves among the saved.
   
   
   6. The more unsure we are about others, the more certain we are that they have failed the salvation test, the better we look.
   7. as if the only way we can claim the good news of God's saving grace for ourselves is by noting that it is bad news for others.

100. With that in mind, Bell suggests Christians need to have a little more humility.

1. Instead of rejoicing in the certainty that we know what it takes to be saved, celebrate the God who time again acts in surprising, gracious ways to save people.

2. instead of narrowing Christ's saving act on the cross by seeing how we can limit that by a certain belief structure, rejoice in the surprising ways God continues to be at work in the world.
   
   
3. Not to say that the question “Do I get to heaven is unimportant.” I suspect Matthew told this story because he knew that there were others who had that question – that we would have that question.
   
   
   4.  But hear the Good news – it is impossible for mortals to answer that God; only God saves
   
   
   Conclusion: Back to Huck Finn – he lives in the fictional town of St. Petersburg, MO

Literally “St. Peter's town”

St. Peter, the one manning the gates of heaven in any story or joke about getting to heaven.

As if Twain's whole story is about the question of salvation.

Turns out Huck Finn finds himself too busy helping his slave friend Jim get to freedom to do the things he's told he needs to do to get to heaven.

“Do you want to get to heaven?” Is that a question we need to answer or an invitation to know the saving grace of God and to follow our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?

"A Surprising God" Matthew 19: 16-30; 2 Corinthians 5: 12-21

This sermons grows out of my reading Rob Bell's Love Wins.  Bell tackles the question of eternal life in some interesting ways.  I resonate with his sense that Christians have put too much emphasis on "Are you saved?" instead of "Am I following the Savior?" (my words, not his).  I also like his suggestion that believing in the sovereignty of God might mean believing that when God says Christ comes to redeem the world God will be true to that despite human sinfulness.

I have been listening to the soundtrack from the musical "Big River" (another Clergy Renewal thing because I was reminded of how much I loved those songs when I had lunch with the friend who first gave me that tape).  The musical, which follows Huckleberry Finn's adventures, has a great song that has everyone in town asking Huck Finn "Do you want to get to heaven," and if he does he needs to learn to read and write or he'll "never learn how" to get to heaven.  I suspect that historically lots of things have been suggested for others to do so that they can get to heaven.

It also occurs to me that the judgmental side of humans make us like the question of eternal life because it can serve as a way to separate -- they're out, but of course, we're in!

The rich young ruler asks Jesus a question about eternal life and Jesus returns the question with a challenge that most of us cannot meet -- not only obey all the commandments, but sell everything and give it to the poor.  In a way, Jesus seems to be leading us into the trap of creating hoops to jump through to get to heaven.  On the other hand, his tone and demeanor suggest that he will keep raising the demand until it becomes obvious that no one can achieve eternal life, at least of their own accord.  Maybe, just maybe, that allows us to hear and claim the grace of God that sends Christ to save sinners, to save even us.

Peace,

Richard

"A Changing Call" Acts 16: 6-15; John 15: 9-17

The sermon felt a little unfocused.  Some good stories, but too broad a focus.  I wish I had spent more time on the Greek words for "servant" and "friend."  I think that would have added to the sermon.

“A Changing Call” September 11, 2011; Acts 16: 6-11

Introduction: when I was driving back from Chicago after having been gone for three weeks, I tuned in to the station I listen to on FM (99.9). I also have 94.5 preset because my daughters like it (I really don't like it). As I listened to 99.9, I discovered that I didn't like its music that night. As I searched for stations, I landed on a song I like, and then noticed it was on 94.5. I began switching back and forth between those two stations as I discovered the music I liked on 94.5 and the music I didn't like on 99.9. I was rather confused. As it turns out, the stations had exchanged their frequencies over the time I was gone. Not sure the Holy Spirit was at work in the radio stations, it started me reflecting on change – particularly how other people's lives had changed and how God might be at work in that. 

This is also the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

1.  Survivor stories speak to the way in which those tragic events changed people's lives.

2. Circumstances were beyond their control, but it forced change on them.



This morning I want to share stories of people's changing sense of call. As you hear the, I invite you to reflect on how you have experienced such change in call in the past and what God might be calling you to next.

Move 1: Woman from internship

a. I had a chance to visit with a woman who I first met while on internship during seminary.

b. She and her husband were friends and mentors to Leslie and me.

c. When I was working with she and her husband, they had become focused on mission work. Led the first mission trip. Became volunteer mission trip leaders for a few summers spending their vacation time working with mission groups in Nuevo Laredo.

d. As part of their mission work in the local church, they became active at the presbytery level, which led to their interest in social justice. Their interest shifted from mission work like mission trips to social justice issues and simple living … led to their moving their membership to another church that focused on these issues.

e. Decided to retire early, live a simple life and felt called to be house parents at a children's home in another city in TX. Changed place to live. Changed emphasis. Changed lifestyle

f. Dreamed of building a simple home near a lake in central TX. Began working on it. Husband died unexpectedly just before house was finished. Widow finished the house and now lives there. Shift in calling to being active in women's group at the new church. And, since she now commutes 45 minutes to church, she shared with me this a new role she has in helping this church understand and deal with members who live outside the local community in which the church is located. each of which was very meaningful to her and certainly sounded like a call to me.

g. Mission trips; simple living and social justice; house parents; women's groups and commuter member; a changing sense of call over twenty years – some initiated by her and her husband; others a response to circumstances beyond her control.

Move 2: Gospel story

a. Jesus' final comments to his disciples.

b. Jesus notes a shift in the disciples role.

  1. They go from servants to friends.

  2. Servants – who only do what the master says, with no need to understand.

  3. To friends – who become partners with Christ and will carry on his ministry when Christ leaves.

b. I imagine at least some of the disciples were unsure about this change.

  1. Can't you hear them.

  2. We haven't even got this servant thing down yet; now you want us to be your friends?

c. Yet that is what God needs of them and that is what God will empower them to do.

Move 3: Man on internship

a. I had lunch with several people after worshiping at the church where I served my internship.

b. IN that conversation, one of the men began to tell me about his latest ministry interest – doing what some of you know as Emmaus walks at prisons.

c. Emmaus walk – spiritual growth week-end.

  1. He wanted to go on one with his daughter, who was in high school, as a bonding time for both of them.

  2. They did bond, but he also found himself overwhelmed at this sense that God might be calling him to a new ministry.

  3. But what?

  4. Someone mentioned Emmaus walks in prisons.

  5. Caught his attention.

  6. Thus began his involvement with a group that hosts Emmaus walks in a prison twice a year.

  7. Powerful stories of how that impacts the prisoners and the prison as a whole.

c. While telling me this story, he noted that he had never felt called to discipleship to this ministry.

   1. I did not argue the point with him.

   2. But I knew he had been called to other ministries at other times in his life because I could tell you some other stories of how he lived out his calling as a disciple of Christ.

   3. But I got the point – when he connected himself with the ministry to which God called him at a particular time in his life, it excited and empowered him in ways that made that particular ministry seem like the most important thing he had ever done.

Move 4: Paul

a. In Acts, we read of Paul being stopped by the Holy Spirit from going to one place and instead being sent to another place. Little story, but big impact. It shifts where Paul is going to do his ministry and where the early church is going to spread.

b. Paul credits, or perhaps blames the Holy Spirit for this shift.

c. Paul, closely connected to what God might be doing with him.

Move 5: Consider what is happening in your life now.

a. I suspect some of us are dealing with changes not of our choosing; others changes we initiated.

b. As followers of Christ, we hear the call to figure out where God is calling us and to what ministries God has in mind for us.

"A Changing Call" Acts 16: 6-15

As I heard stories this summer on Clergy Renewal, I was struck by how many people were living out their call to discipleship in different ways than they were when I knew them.  I mentioned in an earlier sermon my Jr. High leaders who heard a call to a new church development project.

I also had a chance to talk with a woman who has gone through 5 distinct phases of her sense of call over the last 20 years -- each of which was very meaningful to her and certainly sounded like a call to me.

A third person shared their new sense of call with lots of excitement.  I was struck when he said something like, "I finally felt Jesus in my heart." and realized that when I knew him he was a model of discipleship to me, but now he looks back and sees that as a time when he was not connected as closely to Christ.

This is also the 10th anniversary of 9/11 which reminds me that sometimes circumstances beyond our control cause radical changes to take place in our lives.

On a lighter note, when I was driving back from Chicago after having been gone for three weeks, I tuned in to the station I listen to on FM (99.9).  I also have 94.5 preset because my daughters like it (I really don't like it).  As I listened to 99.9, I discovered that I didn't like its music that night.  As I searched for stations, I landed on a song  I like, and then noticed it was on 94.5.  I began switching back and forth between those two stations as I discovered the music I liked on 94.5 and the music I didn't like on 99.9.  I was rather confused.  As it turns out, the stations had exchanged their frequencies over the time I was gone.  Change!

Can you identify changes in your sense of call and what prompted that change?  Paul credits his change of direction to the Holy Spirit.

Peace,

Richard

Reflections on "Calling People" Exodus 3: 13-15; John 11: 17-27

  I was not sure about the link between John 11 and the sermon, but it worked really well from my perspective. An unintended benefit may be that it took a text that is often only thought of as a memorial service text and cast it in a different light.


When I saw "Jesus Christ, Superstar" the disciples had this really cool little chant.  I had assumed it was part of the sound track, but it was not.  I guess the cast just created it for that particular production.  I wish I could have remembered it because it would have fit perfectly with the sermon theme.


The sermon reminded me of how I often can find expression for what I am thinking about the biblical texts in a song or line from a play.

“Calling People” Sept. 4, 2011; Exodus 3; Clergy Renewal series

Introduction: I have been fascinated with this story from Exodus longer than I have been preaching.

a. Burning bush. Voice of God (what kid wouldn't want to be the voice of God shouting out from the bushes?). Drama!

b. When I studied it in seminary, I became intrigued by Moses demanding to know God's name – if the people ask the name of the God who sends me, what shall I tell them your name is?

1. Moses, seemingly trying to get out of becoming /God's chosen leader trying to put up obstacles, and getting God's answer, "I am who I am" or "I will be who I will be" in return.
2. God answering in such a mysterious way that suggests the power and presence of God in ways we can only imagine.

c. I had never paid much attention to what followed, but recently I noticed what else God has to say about God's name.

1. "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you': This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations."

2. “I am who I am” who be forever linked with the phrase “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob”
3. Not “I am who I am” and "God the great," or "God the Almighty," or "God the creator," or "God the boss” or “God and fill-in-the-blank with a superlative."

         4. No, God chooses to be linked with the people with who God has chosen to be in relationship.

d.  part of me wants to ask “God, couldn't you find some better people by which to define yourself?”

     1. Abraham – never seems to fully trust God; lies on more than one occasion; sends his wife to sleep with other kings when necessary; and although God tells him to, as a father I have to wonder about a guy who is willing to sacrifice his son on an altar.

     2. Or Isaac – well, Isaac is not that bad a choice; he does get duped by his wife and son and played for the fool, but...

    3. Or Jacob – who is always cheating someone or being cheated; steals from his own brother; runs away when things get tough; chickens out when it's time to return to make things right with his brother.

    4. Couldn't God do better than to choose to be linked to these three?

  e. God could have, but instead God chooses to be defined by these far from perfect people.

Move 2: “Jesus Christ, Superstar”

a. One night while in Seattle on Clergy Renewal, I found myself at the Village Theater in Issaquah, WA.

     1. Regional theater putting on the production of "Jesus Christ Superstar."

     2. As we look to the stage, we see a fence rising up from the front edge of the stage.

     3. What could be an alley sits behind the fence with broken down buildings.

     4. It seemed like a mix of West Side story scene and war-torn Beirut.

     5. As the music starts to begin the show, the cast arrives to conquer the fence – some climbing over it; others cutting a hole in it to climb through.

     6. The cast looks like a tough group of people that might be wandering the streets today.

     7. In just a few moments, it is clear that this production will not have long, white flowing robes or any sense that it is from biblical times.

     8. The setting is now, in a pretty tough neighborhood of a city.

b. Not the first production to transport its setting to another time and place.

1. I can well remember seeing Oedipus Rex, a Greek drama, set among the Aztecan people of Mexico – now that's a long evening!
2. But there is a power to this setting of “Jesus Christ, Superstar”
3. As Jesus and his followers play out the story a message is loud, but unspoken.
4. Jesus' story can be played out in any generation.
5. Jesus' disciples can come, indeed they will come from any generation and any place.
6. From 1^st century Jerusalem to 21^st century city streets, Jesus chooses to live among the people and call people to follow him.

c. Disciples find it hard to be disciples, but Jesus still chooses to work through the disciples.

c. The disciples portrayed do not figure it out any better in the current setting than they did in the original context.

Move 3: Story from the Gospel of John.

a. Often read at memorial services to proclaim the resurrection.

1. Frances' service this week.
2. But notice that the story is more than just Jesus proclaiming the resurrection.
3. If all that mattered was the the miraculous raising of Lazarus as proof of the resurrection, Jesus could have easily just swept into town and brought Lazarus back to life.

b. But Martha matters.

      1.This grieving sister needs to be comforted.

2. Jesus wants to share the hope of the resurrection with her personally.
3. For Jesus, it was also about the people. matters.

Move 4: I had a chance to do some really neat things while on Clergy Renewal:  hike in Ghost Ranch, NM; go up on the tram to walk in the snow near Salt Lake City; hike up to Multnomah Falls in Oregon; watch the fireworks on the 4th at the foot of the Washington Monument; take the tram up the mountain in El Paso to see how closely the borders or New Mexico, Juarez, Mexico and El Paso are; and watch the salmon swim upstream in Seattle, WA (to name just a few things).  But without a doubt, the best thing I did was spend time with people -- some family; some friends I see fairly often; some friends I haven't seen in two decades; all people with whom I had a shared history.  At the end of the Clergy Renewal, the people were what gave that time its shape and meaning.

a. God chooses to give shape and meaning to what God is doing in our world through people.

Conclusion: AS we approach our Lord's Table this morning and declare that we are united in Christ with those who have come before, those who will follow us, we can dare to make this claim because we follow a God who chooses to live among and be known by people.

Real people.

People like us.

"Calling People" Exodus 3:11-15; John 11: 17-27

I had a chance to do some really neat things while on Clergy Renewal:  hike in Ghost Ranch, NM; go up on the tram to walk in the snow near Salt Lake City; hike up to Multnomah Falls in Oregon; watch the fireworks on the 4th at the foot of the Washington Monument; take the tram up the mountain in El Paso to see how closely the borders or New Mexico, Juarez, Mexico and El Paso are; and watch the salmon swim upstream in Seattle, WA (to name just a few things).  But without a doubt, the best thing I did was spend time with people -- some family; some friends I see fairly often; some friends I haven't seen in two decades; all people with whom I had a shared history.  At the end of the Clergy Renewal, the people were what gave that time its shape and meaning.

That should not have surprised me given that the story in Exodus when God confronts Moses is one of my favorite stories.  Generally, I focus on God's answer to Moses' question, "What do I tell people your name is?" because God's answer, "I am who I am" (or "I will be who I will be") is such a great answer.  But, consider what God goes on to say -- "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you': This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations."  Not "God the great," or "God the Almighty," or "God the creator," or "God and fill-in-the-blank with a superlative."  No, God defines God's self the the people with whom he has been in relationship.  Apparently, God's chooses us and values us at the core of who God is.

Sunday we gather around the Lord's Table. When we do so, we proclaim that we do so with all those who have come before, those who come after us, and those who are with in that moment.  Sounds like something God might do!

Peace,

Richard