Those Who Dream . . . Prepare the Way

Mark 1:1-8     Common English Bible

The beginning of the good news about Jesus Christ, God’s Son, happened just as it was written about in the prophecy of Isaiah:

Look, I am sending my messenger before you.
He will prepare your way,
a voice shouting in the wilderness:
        “Prepare the way for the Lord;
        make his paths straight.”

John the Baptist was in the wilderness calling for people to be baptized to show that they were changing their hearts and lives and wanted God to forgive their sins. Everyone in Judea and all the people of Jerusalem went out to the Jordan River and were being baptized by John as they confessed their sins. John wore clothes made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts and wild honey. He announced, “One stronger than I am is coming after me. I’m not even worthy to bend over and loosen the strap of his sandals. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

 

 

If there is anything that I have learned about Meridian Street United Methodist Church and the wonderful people who call this community home, is that you are the most task driven people that I have ever met.

I don’t say that as a criticism --- instead it is just an observation of what I have seen over the last few years.

You love to set goals and then check off the boxes to make the goal happen.

On August 15^th, 2010 --- the day before my 50^th birthday, I set, what seemed to me at the time, the most ambitious goal of my life.

I was overweight and out of shape --- having given up playing softball a couple of years earlier since all I ever got was injured.

But on that day --- in the midst of worship --- I announced to the church that I had set a goal of completing a marathon during that 50^th year of my life.

Nancy was scheduled to run her 10^th marathon in just a couple of months --- having qualified and completed her second Boston marathon earlier that year.

The thrill of being her support team for all those marathons inspired me to give it a try.

On Labor Day weekend, 2011 --- I completed the Marquette Michigan Marathon in a whopping 6 hours and 20 minutes.

          I missed my goal of finishing a marathon by 2 weeks.

Undaunted, I signed up for the 2012 Chicago marathon and cut my time by 1 hour and a half.

Since then I have run on average two half marathons each year.

But over these last 10 years, one goal has alluded me

Each year I start the year with the goal of running 1,000 miles over the course of the year

That is only averaging 85 miles a month --- or 20 miles a week.

I do great for the first half of the year --- but then at some point I always seem to fall behind – and by the time October or November gets here --- the goal is out of reach.

This year --- I think I can do it!

With 5 weeks to go --- I am already at 940 miles --- just 60 miles from the finish line!

Obviously, the last month of the year makes this a challenge --- but . . .

The key to achieving any dream or goal is preparation.

          And a willingness to do the work necessary.

What dreams do you have?

Jonas Salk, the inventor of the polio vaccine said:

I have had dreams and I have had nightmares, but I have conquered my nightmares because of my dreams.

And   

Hope lies in dreams, in imagination, and in the courage of those who dare to make dreams into reality.

What are your dreams?

John the Baptist, according to Luke, a cousin of Jesus --- had a dream of a more just, more equitable world

          A world that resembled the long sought kindom of God

Mark’s Gospel begins with John in the wilderness of Judea along the Jordan river inviting people to be baptized.

The reason we are told that he wanted people to be baptized was as to demonstrate a symbolic way of showing that their hearts had been changed.

And Mark reports that many, many people came down to the Jordan River to confess their sins and be baptized by John.

But Luke adds an interesting addition to the story.  He has John saying to some in the crowd who had come down to the Jordan River.

“You children of snakes! Who warned you to escape from the angry judgment that is coming soon? Produce fruit that shows you have changed your hearts and lives.” . . .

The crowds asked him, “What then should we do? 

He answered, “Whoever has two shirts must share with the one who has none, and whoever has food must do the same.”

Even tax collectors came to be baptized. They said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?”

He replied, “Collect no more than you are authorized to collect.”

Soldiers asked, “What about us? What should we do?”

He answered, “Don’t cheat or harass anyone, and be satisfied with your pay.”

The dream that John had was not to see how many people he could baptize --- but to see how many lives could be transformed --- who would then work to make the world more just.

John also knew that he would not be able to see the dream come to its fruition, that was the job of the one for whom he was preparing the way.

Jesus would not just baptize us with water as a symbol of a changed heart --- Jesus comes to baptize us with the Holy Spirit and give us the tools to change the world.

So, who are the John the Baptists today?

Who are the ones calling us to be transformed?

I think back just a couple of months ago when we saw thousands of persons protest peacefully in downtown Indianapolis reminding us that black lives matter.

          In July and August we saw downtown Indy transformed

And some of us acted just like some of those that heard John’s call 2,000 years ago

We came downtown to lend our voice, our feet, our bodies to proclaim that without justice there can be No peace.

But some of us also stayed home --- because we were frightened or not motivated enough --- and let others vocalize the reality that not all people are treated the same in our society.

And others of us got angry and mad that THEY had the audacity to challenge the system that is in place.

All that took place 2,000 years ago as well.

Today we lit the candle of peace in our Advent wreath --- but my friends --- as long as injustice continues to be normative in our society ---- there can be no peace.

I have been slowly working my way through David Garrow’s Pulitzer Prize winning book on Martin Luther King called Bearing the Cross.

I am really struggling with the book --- because I have told myself over and over again how much better things are today than they were in the 50’s and 60’s.  And the more I read, the more I realize NOTHING HAS CHANGED.

People of color,

people whose sexual orientation is different from mine,

people who are immigrants

are all still looked at with an attitude of distrust if not hatred.

Martin stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28^th, 1963 --- almost 100 years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

          Martin spoke for a little over 16 minutes

          And he offered us the dream of a better world.

He said:

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

He went on:

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. 

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."

Five years later --- Martin was murdered.

60 years later we still yearn for that same dream.

The question is ---- are we willing to do the hard work to make that dream come true.

Because it will not come true just by us wishing for it.

Alan Paton has reminded us:

It is not "forgive and forget" as if nothing wrong had ever happened, but "forgive and go forward," building on the mistakes of the past and the energy generated by reconciliation to create a new future.

John --- and Jesus --- have told us what is required if we want to make that dream our own.

Not only do we need to stand up and be counted --- but our very hearts must be transformed.

We must be willing to do the hard work of justice and peace.

We have been baptized by the Holy Spirit and have been called to be messengers of God’s kindom.

To prepare the way for a just peace is a choice that we must make daily

We know that what we see is not all there can, will, or should be.

Are we willing to face the troubles of the world

receptively,

perceptively,

and attentively

as we join the dreamers as they join with all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics,

joining hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:

Free at last! Free at last! 

Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

Are you working to prepare the way?

Distortions

 Romans 12:1-3 (CEB)

So, brothers and sisters, because of God’s mercies, I encourage you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice that is holy and pleasing to God. This is your appropriate priestly service. Don’t be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you can figure out what God’s will is—what is good and pleasing and mature. 

Because of the grace that God gave me, I can say to each one of you: don’t think of yourself more highly than you ought to think. Instead, be reasonable since God has measured out a portion of faith to each one of you.

 

 

 

Have you ever picked up a curved piece of glass and looked through it?

          Even though the piece of glass is clear --- when you look through it ---

                   Nothing is quite right.

The curvature of the glass causes everything to become distorted

The very center may stay normal, but as you move toward the edges --- everything changes

Too often --- many people live their lives looking through curved glasses

We distort the world around us --- and often have a hard time finding our way.

The problem is --- not only do we distort the world around us --- we distort the image of God.

There is a phrase that I often find myself using in response to people who tell me that that they don’t (or no longer) believe in God.

As they tell me all the reasons they don’t believe in God --- I have been known to quip back: “I don’t believe in the God that you don’t believe in either.”

          I love the puzzled look they give me

The image that we have created of God is often distorted from the image of God presented in the biblical story.

Now before I get too far down this path --- I will fully admit that the biblical story does not always present a consistent image of God --- it too has distortions.

But the image of God that I have learned to cling to is the image of God presented in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

As a Christian --- a follower of Jesus --- I do my best to filter my life through the piece of glass that Jesus gives to me.

I want to pause and talk a little about the idea of why I think that our images of God are important.

First, please realize that images and ideas or beliefs are not necessarily the same thing.

Images are not abstract ideas that we simply assent too.

Images are pictures.

          Powerful combination of thoughts and feelings.

When we were infants --- long before we could use and understand words --- we thought in pictures and images.

We created a memory bank of images and those images are loaded with emotional context.

          Our mother’s face when she is happy --- and when she is sad.

          Our father’s face when he is angry or laughing

These --- along with a myriad of other images are stored in the deep recesses of our memory.

These images became linked with the soothing we felt or with the increased fear we felt in interacting with these important faces and voices.

These emotionally laden images of parents or of other early caretakers form the basic foundation of our expectations in relationships with all other people, including God.

What is fascinating to me is that our declarations about God --- what we might call creedal or doctrinal affirmations about God may not be the same as our images of God.

·         We may BELIEVE that God is a God of Love

·         But our image of God may be one of a warrior or bully

When our image and belief do not align it is often our image that wins out.

These internalized images often can contain significant distortions about what we BELIEVE about God.

Why is this important?

Let me offer three suggestions.

First, our images of God can have a significant impact on our behaviors

even without our conscious awareness.

A second reason is that they often impact our spiritual well-being.

And a third reason is that our images of God are related to our images of ourselves.

Unfortunately for every distortion one has of God there is usually a corresponding self-distortion.

A. W. Tozer, in his book, The Knowledge of the Holy, wrote:

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

Without a clear view of God --- our very life often becomes distorted

A distorted image of God is simply a belief in a lie that can keep us from trusting,

from being vulnerable,

or from stepping out in faith on God’s promises.

For years I BELIEVED that God is love.

          I would proclaim that in my words

                   But my actions did not always match that statement

I believed that God is love --- except, or only if . . .

God is love to people who are like God

But if you are not a Christian

                    Believe in other Gods

                    Don’t believe the right things about God

                             Then God is a vengeful God . . .

I don’t know where that came from

Even though we like to talk about unconditional love --- most of us really don’t practice it.

We are told to “Love others as yourself”

But we tend to distort that in a variety of ways.

          We hear: “Love others instead of self” or maybe even

                   “Love self instead of others”

Greek philosopher Xenophanes said,

“Men always create gods in their own image.”

Our view of God is distorted because we tend to project our flaws, defects, and inadequacies on God.

We project our bad qualities onto God as a defense mechanism because it is too painful and threatening to admit that these negative things are actually true about us.

Thus, we see God as the one who is

selfish,

lazy,

indifferent,

immature,

disingenuous,

mean,

exploitive,

condemning,

shallow,

arrogant,

incompetent,

critical,

hateful,

condescending,

petty,

dumb,

cruel,

confused,

fickle,

shaming,

cold,

indecisive,

and unkind.

But --- God, as found in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus --- is not anything like that

Rather than be fair and honest about just how different God is from us, we unconsciously bring God down to a human level by projecting our worst qualities onto God.

So how does one move past our distorted images of God?

Let me share a story. 

Julie Lavender shared this story:

Most mornings as I put my contacts in, I pray, “Thank you, God, for the gift of sight.” But one morning after a difficult night at church with teenagers, I used the time instead for a gripe session. “I’m done, God. I’m through volunteering with youth. They’re not appreciative. They’re disrespectful. They’re just a bunch of self-absorbed kids who can’t focus for even one minute on anything else.” All the while, I fought with my contacts. I fumbled one, flipped the other. Aloud, I half-heartedly asked God, “What are you trying to tell me — that I’m seeing this all wrong?”

With some thought, I realized that I had been the self-absorbed one. Instead of seeing the young person with recently separated parents, I saw misbehavior. Instead of someone with an underage drinking problem, I saw disrespect. Where I should have seen one struggling with a cutting problem, I saw anger. God reminded me that Jesus “took the children in his arms” (Mark 10:16). He loved them, cared for them, and was deeply concerned about their lives. And we are called to show the same compassion. I prayed — for the kids, for their issues, and for my blurred vision. And I vowed that rather than showing them my disapproval, I would show them my love.

The way to change our images is to first and foremost be honest with ourselves.

To look at our images of God --- not simply what we proclaim to believe --- but what comes out of our mouth in a moment of stress or confrontation.

The hardest part of ever changing our behavior is to accept that we need to change.

We need to ask ourselves:

What are my worst fears about God?

How do I think God sees me?

What do I think God expects of me?

What pictures come to mind when I think about God?

This kind of exploration can be painful, but it is the kind of truth-telling which can lead to healing.

And while self-help and self-reflection are important.

The real healer of our distorted images is the Spirit.

Are we willing to take the time to examine ourselves and then allow the Spirit to enter into our lives and heal us?

Our distortions of God can be destructive.

Destructive to ourselves

          And destructive to those around us.

May we have the courage to look at our images of God --- and begin the hard work of bringing our beliefs and our actions into harmony.

Thirty Five Years

Sunday, I plan on preaching on how we have a distorted image of God --- all of us; not just some of us.  We make God into our own image.  It is weird to be working on this today --- for no day has more impacted my understanding of God than November 11^th.

Thirty-five years ago, Stewart Wesley Conger crossed over the summit into whatever it is that awaits us next.  I remember that day more clearly than any other in my life – which in itself is kind of weird.  I remember that final day more than I remember some of the great times that Stewart and I had.  I think I remember it, because that day has come to define our relationship.

As I have told many times before, I got a collect phone call from my father (whose parent calls their broke son collect?).  He was calling from the hospital to let me know that Stewart was being released to the hospital and sent home to die.  The doctor told him that if I wanted to come home, I needed to head north ASAP. 

I was not able to leave until Sunday right after church.  Sue brought Nancy out to Richfield in time for church where I announced to the wonderful people who had loved me in a way I had never experienced before that I did not know if I would ever be back. 

Immediately after church, Nancy and I (we were dating at the time) began the long journey from North Carolina to Downers Grove, Illinois.  I had not slept the night before because I had a lock-in with the youth of the circuit at the parsonage.  We drove as long as I was capable (we stopped outside of Frankfort Kentucky at I am sure a flea bag hotel).  I called home and was told not to push it because they did not expect Stewart to make it through the night.  In the middle of the night I was awoken from a deep sleep with the NEED to get on the road. 

We arrived in Downers Grove at the house, and silently slipped into the family room where Stewart lay on a hospital bed.  No one even heard us come into the house, and neither my dog (Nahum a beagle) or my parents’ dog (Lazarus) made a sound as we entered.  A few minutes after we arrived, and I had a chance to talk with Stewart, he took his last breath and died.

For whatever reason, Stewart hung on until I was there.  It is the greatest gift in my life, rivaled only by Nancy and my three beautiful daughters. 

I have had the privilege to be with dozens of people as they take their last breath, and everyone is remarkable.  It is a reminder of how fragile life is and how precious a gift it is.

Thirty-five years have gone by in a flash. 

Today I have not been as low as I often get --- and for that I am thankful.  A big reason for that is the love and support that Nancy gives me.  But I think it is also the reality that together we have lost so much of our family.  Stewart followed nine years ago by Ed, Nancy’s dad, eight years ago, Mike, Nancy’s brother died, and then in May of last year we lost Sue, Nancy’s mom. 

Part of my dad today was spent going over the financial documents for my parents to be able to move into a Senior Living Community.  It grieves me that they can no longer stay in their condo – but those days are over, and I hope to get them moved so that they can enjoy a new community and build new relationships while still being independent.  I know that they are struggling with this changing reality in their lives.

Life is hard --- but it is also good.

In three days, Nancy joins me by celebrating her 60^th birthday.  I cannot express how fortunate I am that she is in my life.  She has been there through the good, the bad and the ugly --- but through it all she has never given up on me.  She was there with me when Stewart died --- and has held me and comforted me as I have grieved over the past 35 years.  I am thankful that we can do this journey together.

Last Sunday, as part of her birthday celebration we went to Turkey Run and hiked for almost 6 miles.  It was a beautiful day and a great way to remember.  Remember the gift of life, the joy of love and family.

Who Are You A Saint For?

1 John 3:1-3      Common English Bible

See what kind of love the Father has given to us in that we should be called God’s children, and that is what we are! Because the world didn’t recognize him, it doesn’t recognize us. 

Dear friends, now we are God’s children, and it hasn’t yet appeared what we will be. We know that when he appears we will be like him because we’ll see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves even as he is pure.

 

In just a few minutes we are going to read the list of the members of Meridian Street Church that have died since last All Saints Day.

We do this for a couple of reasons.

First, because we want to honor and remember our loved ones who have left us.

Second, we want to be encouraged to live our lives in a manor worth of the saints.

All right, I know that as soon as I mention the word saints, some of you are rolling your eyes --- because many of us are NO saints.

Saints for most of us, are, in the words of Frederick Buechner:

men and women of such paralyzing virtue that they never thought a nasty thought or did an evil deed their whole lives long.

When we say saint, we think of such loft individuals as:

St. Peter

St. Paul

St. Francis

St Tomas Aquinas

St. Thérèse of Lisieux

Mother Theresa

According to Britannica:

In Roman Catholicism and certain other Christian faith traditions, a saint is a holy person who is known for his or her “heroic sanctity” and who is thought to be in heaven. In the 10th century, Pope John XV formalized a process for the identification of saints. Before that time, saints were largely established by public cult. There are more than 10,000 saints recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, though the names and histories of some of these holy men and women have been lost to history.

I love that phrase --- heroic sanctity

          What the heck does that even mean?

I don’t want to talk about those kinds of saints

I will be honest, I don’t know of anyone here at Meridian Street who is on that kind of sainthood track

          Sorry to disappoint some of you

The type of saint that I am talking about are the ones that Fredrick Buechner was talking about when he wrote:

As far as I know, real saints never even come close to characterizing themselves that way. On the contrary, no less a saint than Saint Paul wrote to Timothy, "I am foremost among sinners" ( l Timothy 1:15), and Jesus himself prayed God to forgive him his trespasses, and when the rich young man addressed him as "good Teacher," answered, "No one is good but God alone" (Mark 10:18).

In other words, the feet of saints are as much of clay as everybody else's, and their sainthood consists less of what they have done than of what God has for some reason chosen to do through them. When you consider that Saint Mary Magdalene was possessed by seven devils, that Saint Augustine prayed, "Give me chastity and continence, but not now," that Saint Francis started out as a high-living young dude in downtown Assisi, and that Saint Simeon Stylites spent years on top of a sixty-foot pillar, you figure that maybe there's nobody God can't use as a means of grace, including even ourselves.

Doesn’t that make more sense --- the simple notion ---- that God could use you in some way that is amazing.

Tuesday will end one of the ugliest campaigns seasons that I can ever remember.

National politics have often turned ugly as outside dollars have come in and muddied up the waters.

I was shocked when I was out in Arizona at the vitriolic nature of the commercials from the so called “political action committees” that attacked both Martha McSally and Mark Kelly

          Frankly they were disgusting

But if you have watched any TV the last few weeks you can tell me all the supposedly terrible things about both Christina Hale and Victoria Sparks --- but to what end?

While politicians rarely claim to be saints

Every politician that I have personally gotten to know (both republican and democrats) have been good human beings.

                   Not the caricature that the opposing party tries to portray them

What does it say about us that we would rather be titillated by the sins of others than celebrating a saint?

I am fascinated by the art of M.C. Escher --- his pencil drawing, I believe called “endless stairs” --- hung on the wall of my dorm room in college.

What I loved about Escher is that you can’t just glance at his work for a moment and comprehend it.

His work demands that you stare at it for a long time, wondering if your eyes are playing tricks on you.

I marvel at the imagination it must take to even think of things like this, which are impossible in real life.

His art forces us to stretch the bounds of our understanding and reconsider what really is possible.

I think that is a good image for us as we prepare for a post-election world.

We have to rethink what is really possible.

          And we have to see beyond the caricatures to see what God is calling us to be

Regardless of what happens on Tuesday --- half of our country is going to be unhappy.

          And I hope and pray that it is just unhappiness and not anything more.

But you and I as followers of Jesus have a different responsibility

The United States of America isn’t our first allegiance

          What is best for our personal pocketbooks isn’t our first allegiance.

Our first allegiance is Christ.

Do I need to say that again?

          Our allegiance is to the Kindom of God

Because when Jesus appears --- as 1 John tells us --- we are to be like him!

We are to be a people striving for God’s kindom

In the book of Revelation, chapter 7 we find this beautiful vision of God’s kindom:

After this I looked, and there was a great crowd that no one could number. They were from every nation, tribe, people, and language.

And on this All Saints Sunday, we need to ask ourselves --- are we living as citizens of God’s Kindom or do we seek satisfaction in another sphere?

But for me --- the really important question is --- are we living our lives in such a way that others will look at us and recognize Jesus?

The entire Book of Revelation seems to me to be trying to give comfort to people just like us.

People who are overwhelmed and beginning to think that the worlds story is easier than following the way of Jesus.

          And you know what ---

                   I wonder at times if that isn’t true

          Wouldn’t it be so much easy to just take care of ME

                   To forget about others

                             To be able to neglect the poor and the widows

                                      The foreigner in our midst

                                                And focus on ME and MY desires

          But that is not the way of Jesus

The Book of Revelation reminds us that the City of God is for all people --- not just some people

The example of those who have finished their course in faith and have chosen the way of Jesus --- you know --- those everyday Saints --- they have shown us through their lives that we CAN make the world a better place than we found it.

          Not necessarily better by our standards

                   But better for all of God’s children

Are we willing to delay our personal rewards in order to make the world a better place for all?

Starting today

          I invite you to stop being a Democrat or a Republican as your identity

                   Instead I invite you to be a Christian

And if you struggle with understanding the difference between those three identities, I would be glad to help.

Saints are those who set aside what is best for them personally

          And chose to do what is best for God’s children

On this All Saints Day --- I pray that we as followers of Jesus --- can have the courage to follow.

I will not be able to join you following the service for our virtual coffee hour --- but I encourage you to do so.

I look forward to gathering with you on Tuesday on the front lawn.

 

Sending Forth

We bless your holy name, O God,
for all your servants who, having finished their course,
now rest from their labors.
Give us grace to follow the example
of their steadfastness and faithfulness,
to your honor and glory;
through Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

 

Can Angels Fly?

Philippians 4:4-13

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it. Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

 

One of my favorite quotes from GK Chesterton goes something like this: “Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly”.

I unfortunately, too often, fail to take myself lightly.

And I don’t personally know of any Christians who can fly.

But there is wisdom in what Chesterton suggests --- even if most of us struggle to “take ourselves lightly.”

Christians don’t have a very good reputation

          Especially in taking ourselves “lightly”

Often in film and literature Christians are depicted as sour faced, unhappy creatures who want to share that unhappiness with everyone around them.

Recently I watched the Academy Award nominated film Doubt.  

It is a powerful movie that will challenge you on a number of levels, but the lead female character Sister Aloysious, played brilliantly by Merle Streep is the character of a miserable, joyless Christian.

John Steinbeck in East of Eden describes Liza Hamilton as:

“…a tight hard little woman humorless as a chicken … [with] a dour Presbyterian mind and a code of morals that pinned down and beat the brains out of nearly everything that was pleasant to do.”

I have met a few Liza’s in my life.

          Especially when I served as pastor in small country churches.

          Every church seemed to have at least one Liza

Even Saturday Night Live got into the act when Dana Carvey created the character of a woman named Enid Strict who was the uptight, smug, and pious host of a talk show called Church Chat. The “church lady”, as she was fondly called, was everyone’s worst nightmare of a neighbor.

Christians --- are stereotyped as people who just are not supposed to be fun. 

We are often seen as:

          Joyless

          Smug

          Self-righteous

          humorless

This morning we conclude our look at Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi by pausing over the final chapter of this short but powerful letter.

If anyone should be the prototype for the joyless Christian it would be Paul.

Paul, throughout his life had lost everything that he valued or would bring him happiness.

We find him isolated from friends and co-workers

His future is unsure and precarious.

Paul is waiting for either Claudius or Nero (we are not sure which one), the Emperor of Rome to decide his fate.

                   Neither are people I would want to judge me

Paul should be miserable --- he surely has every reason to be miserable.

But as you read the letter to the Philippians one thing seems to stand out: JOY.

This letter resounds with joy.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.

And then Paul does something that I really appreciate --- he tells us how to be a people who can rejoice.

Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Paul is letting us know that JOY is shaped when we learn to develop a disciplined focus of our hearts and minds and even our very lives --- focused:

on things that are good,

things that are beautiful,

things that are filled with the joy of the Spirit of Christ.

I read earlier this year a fascinating book by Malcom Gladwell, one of the most thought-provoking authors out there.  His newest book is called Talking to Strangers and like most things that Gladwell writes about, he turns our ideas on their heads.

But in the midst of this work, Gladwell reminds us that our biases deeply influence us subconsciously.

If he had been responding to Paul’s letter, I think he might have said, that Paul is telling us that in order to experience JOY we must set our minds on things that are really good, things which express the greatness and goodness and joy of God.

We need to train our brains to SEE joy

          To SEE the beauty all around us

For the group that has spent the last couple of months working through The Book of Joy by Desmond Tutu and the Dali Lama we have learned the same thing.

An attitude of Joyfulness helps to create Joy all around us.

But Paul’s advice wasn’t finished.  He goes on:

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

As many of you know, my parents have moved back to Darien Illinois and we are working to help them move ultimately into a Senior Living Facility somewhere up in that area.

I have committed --- that as long as I can during this newest rapid increase of COVID --- that every two weeks I will go up on Friday and come back to Indy on Saturday evening.

          I just got back to Indy last evening

I have been reading, David Garrow’s Pulitzer Prize winning book: Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Friday night, my dad and I were talking about the early 60’s being a pastor in Chicago.

This happens to be the part of the book that I am on.

I was born on the South Side of Chicago, and we lived in and around the city during the pivotal events of Martin’s protests against poverty and again the 1968 Democratic Convention.

I was too young to remember either of those events, but to listen to my dad as he shared his feelings and fears gave me a whole new sense of strength and the ability to keep on, keeping on.

As Paul says:

Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me

It is easy to feel joyless right now.

The next week and a half --- we are going to be overwhelmed with dystopian images and messages.

Facebook has become a place where we can see how rude we can be with each other --- which is why you won’t find me on there much anymore

But we as Christians are called to have a different message

We are called to share a message of hope and joy because at the end of the day

--- It is Jesus who is king and ruler of our lives

Jesus calls us to be united in Him and in God’s joy.

Yesterday we got the news that our youngest daughter has tested positive for COVID --- thank goodness --- so far she is only showing very mild symptoms.

As I was chatting with her last night, I wanted her to know that Nancy or I would come to Peoria if she needed anything.  I loved her response.

She said:

I have had five different people who have offered to get me groceries and do anything I need.  I was thinking today that I am really lucky that I’ve got good friends here even if I don’t live close to family.

She went on and said:

You can share at church if you want. --- (She watches each Sunday)  --- But mostly share about Wanda she needs the good vibes more than I do.

We all like to brag about our children --- and one of the hardest things about being your pastor here at Meridian Street is that you have never gotten to know my children.  This is the first church that Nancy and I have served that they have not been in our home and a part of the church (although their ability to participate via livestream has been one of the joys of the pandemic)

Haley is a High School Spanish teacher in Peoria, IL. 

But that does not define her. 

She is a person who is a giver. 

And one of the ways that she has learned to give is to foster animals (usually dogs).  She has had five dogs in her little house at one time.

But not only does she foster dogs --- she is willing to provide a loving home for an abandoned dog who is in what you would call a hospice foster. 

She is willing to welcome, often abused and neglected animals who are nearing the end of their lives into her home and let them know that they are loved.

Wanda --- the one-eyed wonder is one such dog.

Haley was planning on taking her to the vet on Monday for the final goodbye, and just a few minutes ago I got a text that Wanda has taken a turn for the worse and some friends are coming to take her to the vet right now --- but Haley will not be able to be go with her, and I know that it makes her sad and breaks my heart.

But Wanda --- for the five months or so that Haley has been her momma and given her love --- Wanda has filled Haley’s and many others’ hearts with JOY.

Paul understood hardships --- and as he closes this letter, Paul reminds us that hardship should never define us.

Hardship should be the opportunity for us to see and rejoice in the presence of God.

Paul writes:

I can endure all these things through the power of the one who gives me strength.

I am going to close with Paul’s words as translated by Eugene Peterson in The Message

Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

May we learn to fly with the angels --- not because we have some supernatural power --- but because we have learned to take ourselves lightly to find the joy in life and the ability to Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS.