Sermon on Mark 9:30-37 (Proper 20)

The Missing Voice

When I went grocery shopping last weekend I heard and saw a sight that really captured my attention and my heart. There was a young boy shopping with his dad and baby sister in the produce aisle. As they where shopping, the boy kept pointing out different vegetables and fruits that caught his attention. He wasn’t just doing it in a way that only his dad could hear, his excitement was enjoyed by everyone! “Dad! I know what that is! That’s Indian corn! Dad! Look! Purple Cauliflower! That’s awesome! Are we getting bananas, dad? I like bananas!” Then I heard something that brought me crashing down to reality. I’m not sure if it was his dad or another person, but I heard the three most disheartening words ever “Okay, calm down!” The words didn’t seem to faze the boy though. He just kept right on pointing things out, but at a slightly reduced tone.

Our gospel lesson from Mark today is booby trapped. What do I mean by that? You have a director of youth and family ministries preaching. The end of this passage especially has been used as a basis for pointing out the importance of youth and family ministry. This should be a youth minister’s dream verse! I tell you a couple heartwarming stories (I already opened with one), reiterate the importance of welcoming children, get it set in your mind again my usefulness and purpose. Boom! We’re at the hymn of the day and I have a new found job security. Sorry. Not happening. If we just did that much of the complexity of this story would be gone. So strap in, prep for your nap if you must because we’re diving in.

One of the first ways I came at this verse was through something we use with kids all the time. Whenever you got ready to go somewhere in school what was the first thing the teacher told you to do? That’s right. Line up in a line. The line as a form of crowd control and easily mobility for a class has been around forever! I’m pretty sure they did this in Jesus’ day too. So we have our line of kiddos and what is the most coveted place of all? Again, you’re right: the front. You got the special title! You were the line leader! You had an important function! Every kid wants to be the line leader. There is always a pushing and shoving match to see who is going to lead the line which is ultimately decided upon by the teacher.

We encounter the disciples and Jesus today on the road to Capernaum. Jesus took the special side streets because he didn’t want the crowds to know they were there so he could do some intense teaching with his chosen 12. The teaching is intense for this point in the story. Jesus tells them the way things will be. The path that they are headed towards. “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.” The disciples don’t understand, but this time is different, the writer gives us an even deeper glimpse “they were afraid to ask him” So what do the disciples do instead? They get into a slap fighting contest to determine who the line leader is. Okay, so maybe they didn’t really do that, but that is how it went down in my head. They argue about who is the greatest! Who is the line leader. Jesus, being the fantastic teacher that he is, not only calls them on it in a rhetorical way because he knows what was happening, but tries a different approach.

He begins teaching them concerning what they are focused on the most: what does it mean to be the greatest and how to do it. It’s not by being a line leader. It’s not about who comes first. It’s something completely different. Jesus, makes a statement and then follows it up with a concrete example. “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all” Then he takes a child and places it among them. We have to unpack this a bit. In Jesus’ day children were the lowest on the social ladder even below women. This isn’t a heartfelt, “Aw, look at the cute kid with Jesus moment” but a pointed reminder that Jesus is giving to his disciples. Here is the missing voice. Here is the lost voice. Here is the voice on the edge of everything. You want to be first? Pay attention to this voice. Listen to this voice. Serve this voice.

In a 21st century world we have gotten better at this, somewhat. We’re better about welcoming children and listening to that voice. We’re better at listening to some other voices. Not perfect, but better. We still have some growing edges. There are still tons of voices that are looking for welcome. Looking to be a part of our story. Looking to be a part of God’s story. We’re good at listening sometimes and other times we’re not. We get afraid to ask questions or understand, so we start slap fighting to see who gets to be the line leader. We miss the promise of the cross, fail to ask about it when we don’t understand or worse claim that we understand fully. We push other voices out of the picture or try and get them to calm down. We forget to look for who is on the outside edge. There is a voice missing.

One voice that isn’t missing is the one from the cross. A voice that cries out with us “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani? “ “My God, My God why have you forsaken me” A voice that has experienced where we have been, especially when we are on the outside edge.  A voice of love, grace and mercy that continues to teach us how to serve and listen. A voice that gives us the confidence to listen, love and try to understand despite being afraid. A voice that continually speaks a different message that is hard to understand. A message that says to be first is not what is important, but to serve and welcome all. A message that dares us to ask questions. A message that works through the most odd places: Through a cross, through a child, through those on the edge. Even through you and me.

Let me leave you with this: Where is the missing voice in your life? It could be any number of things or people. I’m not talking on a global scale, let’s face it there are missing voices on that stage too. I’m talking about the realm you can do something about. At work, at school, at home, here at Shepherd of Life: What voice needs a welcome? What voice is missing? It may be a voice that is excited and enthusiastic. It may be a voice that is tired and weary. It might be a voice that is broken. It may be a voice that is different. It might be a voice that is just lost and looking for a place. May we join our voices with the voice of God in saying “All are welcome.” Thanks be to God. Amen

Sermon on John 6:24-35 (Proper 13)

Here is Bread

I want to start with a warning. For part of this time this morning, we’re going to be talking about food. Not just any food, but good food. If you didn’t get breakfast this morning, I’m sorry. You have been sufficiently warned, now here we go.

One of the best places we ate at during the National Gathering in New Orleans was a place called Deanie’s. It had been raining most of the day the evening we decided to go to Deanie’s and we were all pretty tired and soggy. Personally, I was ready for a Dr. Pepper and a good meal. We had to wait a minute to be seated, but once we where it didn’t take us long to make our selections. The menu at Deanie’s was filled with all the best New Orleans had to offer. Etouffee, Jambalaya, gumbo, fried everything, and po-boys. I had to go with a classic, Crawfish Etouffee. Now, I don’t consider myself a “foodie” but let me tell you I really enjoy food and trying different things. I knew that this was a good choice to go with. Pretty soon our meal arrived and placed in front of me was this glorious bowl of crawfish etouffee and next to it was a sizable piece of bread. I mention the bread specifically because of one of my favorite ways to clean up after a meal. It may not be the most socially correct thing to do but there are just some meals that you just have to have bread to troll around in the bottom of the plate or bowl with to finish off. My friends, this was one of those times. That etouffee was so good that my bowl was sparkling white once I was done with it. It had to have been the combination of lots of walking, working hard at our service project, getting wet in the rain, getting less sleep, being weary from traveling, but this was one of the best meals that we had while there. It was great food and at that point it hit the spot.

Our gospel text this morning comes after a story you may have heard a few times. The feeding of the 5,000. There was bread and fish at this meal but sadly no etouffee. Right after the feeding, Jesus retires to a mountain to pray, the disciples leave him behind, he decides to go meet them in an unconventional way by walking on the water out to them and then they arrive safely in Capernaum. The crowd then follows them because they look around and realize Jesus and his disciples are nowhere to be found. They are looking for Jesus, but why? Jesus knows why and he cuts them off at the pass. Hence,the weird answer to their question: “Teacher, when did you come here?” Jesus’ response: “You’re not looking for me because of the stuff you saw…you’re looking for me because I gave you some bread.” You have to wonder how many of them gave him a funny look or did the Tim Allen off of Home Improvement “uuuuhhhh” Jesus is right though. The crowd wasn’t looking for him because they were super stoked about all the cool ways he was making God’s kingdom known. They were coming for more tangible reasons, bread.

What follows is a comedy of errors; the crowd continues to try and understand but just doesn’t get it! Jesus says “Don’t work for food that perishes” and mentions something about God so they ask “What must we do to perform God’s work?” The answer really isn’t about work, but more about believing. “Okay, Show us something then so that we can believe. Moses did that for us at least with the whole manna bit in the desert.” That’s when Jesus really gets into the depth of what he is talking about. He says “Listen! I tell you this, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

We often miss the point. I was reminded about this with another story from Gathering. When we arrived back at the airport on Sunday night there was a feeling of being tired, but feeling full. Most everyone had gone to Gathering with some sort of expectation and it seemed to have been met or surpassed. I say most because apparently not all of us went with expectations. As we were grabbing luggage and everyone was departing on their way, Hannah Engberg came up to me and said with a straight face, “At first I didn’t want to go. I thought it was going to be a waste of time. I was angry at my parents for making me go and I wished all sorts of things on them but…” and this is where she broke into a smile “I’m glad I went. I had fun.” All I could respond with was “I’m glad you didn’t tell me that on Wednesday morning!” but then I followed up with “I’m glad you came with us. It was a lot of fun and you helped make it that way” Perhaps we have something to learn from Hannah. Not that we always go into every situation thinking the worst, but at least going into things open about what might happen. I’m not sure if all the youth or sponsors did that during the trip. I know there was some great expectation and anticipation about our service project from those who had gone last time especially about the service project considering the last time around the service project was less than desirable. I think there was some anticipation and expectation from those who it was their first time because of stories from others. Hannah came with little to no expectation and was surprised by the experience.

I wonder if Jesus surprised the crowd with his responses. They were expecting one thing and he gave them something completely different. How often does this happen to us? We come to the table looking for something. Expecting something. Then we get something completely different. Something more than we were expecting. Grace, love, forgiveness, and a reminder of who claims us. It doesn’t always take the form that we want it to though, which makes it really easy to get angry and upset. We want our expectations to be fulfilled and surpassed, but with the caveat that it be done in the way we choose. God doesn’t work like that. God will give bread, but it will look different.

God’s bread came in the form of a person, Jesus. Bread that gives life. Bread from heaven. Bread that continues to give life. We could take that at face value and that’s fine, but as people of faith today it’s important to expand this metaphor and connect it to something. Think for just a moment of a time, place, space, group of people, or a situation that you left feeling full. I’m not talking about the last good meal you had, but the last time you felt full in your soul. In that moment the Bread of Life, Jesus was present. It could be that you haven’t felt that way in a while. Perhaps your struggling with something or just don’t feel as though you’re fully connected. Even in these moments the Bread of Life is still present. The promise is continually there that we will be filled because the bread comes from God and it gives life to the world. It’s not something that we work for, God provides it to us. Love, grace, compassion and forgiveness. All of these things are constant so that we will never be hungry and never be thirsty.

The world needs bread in many and various forms. Some literally need bread to be filled. Some need bread for their soul. Some need to break bread with others to remember how they are loved and appreciated. Some need bread broken for them so that they can continue to break bread for others. We all need a little bread. We all want to be filled. Coming back from National Gathering all 12 of us felt full. Full of love for other people. Full of words from songs and speakers.  Full and ready to love like Jesus. Now, some of that starts to fade but much of it still remains. There is still that fullness within each of us that is ready to serve. Ready to help be bread for the world. Who knows what the bread might look like? It might just look like tator tots or taco shells at Day Camp this week. It might look like hot dog buns broken next Sunday with our church family or next Wednesday with the community at the jamboree. It might be a conversation you have over lunch this week. It might be a meal with your family. The promise remains that right when we need it Jesus says to us “Here is bread.” We’re going to come to the table today and be reminded “Here is bread, broken for you” and then we are sent by God out into the world and do you know what will be said? “Here is bread.” May we be filled with the bread that gives life. May we be open to the surprising ways that bread will come to us. And may we go out and live out our calling to be bread for the world. Amen

Sermon on Mark 5:21-43 (Proper 8)

Take My Hand. We’ll Make It

I thought I would take this opportunity, having just returned from camp, to tell you about one of my favorite parts of camp and what it does for people of all ages. Bible study. Right?!? Because I’m a director of youth and family. Not quite. One of my hands-down favorite parts of camp are the group building activities that culminate in the High Ropes challenge course. There is a progression that the group goes through where they start with some games and activities on the ground to learn each other’s names and work on challenges together. Then they move to low ropes elements which challenge them even more to think outside of the box and rely on their team. The last challenge is the high ropes elements. And they are high. We’re talking “each element takes you 27 feet in the air, you’re strapped into a harness and attached to a rope” high. It’s great. Not because of the physical challenge of it all, but because of the mixture of faith, trust, the need for community, the elements leaving you vulnerable, and reminding you of your limits and having you push them. In many ways it is completely countercultural. I love all of it!

I actually have a scar because of High Ropes. When I was in high school going through their leadership training program for the summer, we went out to do the elements at Ebert Ranch Camp, where we just got back from confirmation camp. There is one element out there called the “Leap of Faith.” Really, I call it the “Leap of Good Balance.” The element consists of a single telephone pole that you climb up, balance on the top of, turn around and then jump out to try and catch a trapeze bar. The top of it is not much bigger than the size of a dinner plate.  Look at this body type and tell me we’re not about to have problems. Without going into too great detail, as a teen I leapt off the backside when trying to stand up, swung around and connected with one of the climbing staples with the side of my leg. There are now stories told around camp about me. Yeah, I’m that guy. The story isn’t over though. I came back 3 years later as a staff member and for part of our training we were going to do the high ropes elements. Guess which one was one of the selected elements? The Leap of Faith. I was being belayed by one of the executive directors at the time who was present when I had failed completely the first go round as a camper. I climbed my way up the pole and stopped dead right about the point I did the last time. That is one of the times I have felt the most vulnerable, the most unsure and coincidently the most supported in my life. You see, everyone else on the ground was rooting for me. They had heard the story and they wanted me to succeed. I slowly made my way up to a standing position, turned around and jumped out and caught the trapeze bar. As I was being lowered to the ground I completely broke down. It was such a rush of emotions to have overcome something that had kicked my butt before. Not only that, but to be able to embrace the folks that wanted the best for me in that moment especially the executive director who, at this point, was crying too. It was a good place to be and a memory I will never forget.

We have a two for one special in our gospel from Mark today. Two stories, one about the synagogue leader Jairus with one about the women with hemorrhages stuck right in the middle of it. Aren’t you glad you came to church today? It’s not every Sunday we get this. One of the themes that permeates these two stories is the same thing I like about the ropes progression: vulnerability. The first character we meet is Jairus. Imagine where he is coming from. He is a leader in the synagogue which means everything that comes with the job: honor, privilege, money, status. None of that matters now because his little girl is sick. He had probably tried many different doctors and tried different treatments, but it didn’t help so he comes to Jesus. The picture we are given is of a man who is terrified, broken and vulnerable. He doesn’t just have a conversation with Jesus like “Hi Jesus, if you’re not too busy can you come take a look at my daughter. I’ve heard you have done some miraculous things and I want to see what you might be able to do.” Jairus could have probably done this because he and Jesus were pretty close to equals during that time in the sense of status. He doesn’t do that, but rather throws himself at Jesus’ feet in the dirt, in the middle of this crowd and begs him over and over again to come and lay hands on his daughter. So Jesus goes with him.

Now enter in this unnamed woman who is the exact opposite. She has been suffering from hemorrhages for 12 years. She’s tried doctor after doctor and has spent all she had. By Jewish law standards she is unclean, unfit to be among normal society. She has no one to advocate for her. She doesn’t have power or status. She is vulnerable too. So vulnerable that she has to push through the crowd to get to Jesus. So vulnerable that she feels like she has to use a “sneak attack” tactic to even get close to him. Just to touch the hem of his robe. That’s all she wants.

What the vulnerability of these two people show us today is what we tend to forget about ourselves. We are just people too. When Jairus is coming to Jesus we no longer see his status or his power, but rather a man who loves his family and would do anything for them. When the woman comes to Jesus we don’t see her condition or her status, but rather we see a woman who is in pain and desperately looking for healing. All too often we ascribe to this belief that we are somehow better because of what we have or what we have done. We build up these constructed models of who we are or who we think we should be. We work to try and fit other’s standards.  I’m guilty of it too. Folks, we are all just people too with our own stories and scars. The stories and the scars, not the stuff we own or construct with in us, are the things that make us who we are. The vulnerable moments when everything is stripped away and we are most like ourselves. The fact that we all have pain in our lives evens out the playing field. We’re not invincible. We’re not beyond needing help from others. We are Jairus and this unnamed woman.

You know who else defines us? God. Through the life and death of Jesus we are given a new name. Jesus even uses it in the gospel text this morning: Daughter, Son, Child of God. When we get to the point where we are the most vulnerable, that’s right when God is there to take us by the hand and say to us “Little Child, Get up!” Even death is not the end. When it seems like life is too much, when we feel like we need to add on to that model we’re building of ourselves, or when we feel like we have to be more than what we are God reminds us that is simply not true. We come to both font and table and are given a reminder that we are children of God. Broken and flawed yet loved and cherished. We belong to God and that is all that matters. We are free to be vulnerable. We are free to be who we were created to be, ourselves.

I think we are all beginning to understand this “being ourselves” thing a little bit better. There is a popular slogan that has been going around these days that started on Twitter. It’s YOLO which stands for “You Only Live Once.” Ask someone who’s younger than me and I bet they have heard of it. Now some people are a little tired of this slogan because a great many people have misused it to justify doing absolutely ridiculous things. That wasn’t its intended purpose. Really it is meant to serve as a reminder of the fact that we don’t live forever and should step out and try things. You know, make the most of what we got. I also think that it serves as a reminder that you are the only you that will live this one life. No one else is like you in any way. That doesn’t necessarily mean go it alone. We still have need for each other.

It’s like the words that the great hymn writer Bon Jovi sang in “Livin’ on a Prayer” I put some of the lyrics on the backpage as a reminder.  The song tells the story of Tommy and Gina and how they are vulnerable people. It tells all of our stories. We’re all halfway there (which I don’t even know what that means!).  We’re all just livin’ on a prayer. We gotta hold on to what we got and we have each other and that’s a lot for love. Oh yeah, we just had a Bon Jovi moment. By the grace and love of God we can dare to be vulnerable and encourage others to be the same. To remember and remind each other of who has claimed us. We can also reach out a hand to each other because we have a hand reaching out and taking a hold of us. We have each other, we have God, and God has us all. With the confidence in knowing that:  We’ll make it, I swear. Amen.

Sermon on Mark 4:35-41 (Proper 7)

I’m Gonna Need a New Pair of Pants

When I was growing up there was a show called “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” that focused around a group of teenagers who named themselves “The Midnight Society” This group would all meet together on a certain night back in the woods around a campfire to tell stories. I know what you’re thinking. It was the 90s, a carefree time when random groups of teenagers could sneak out of their house, meet in the woods and tell each other stories of the paranormal. So maybe the concept isn’t airtight, but it made for a captivating show for me and my friends. Each episode would open with some spooky music and images followed by shots of the group around the fire. There was always one storyteller who, after giving a short introduction to the theme of the story, would reach into a leather bag to pull out a handful of powder which they then thrust into the fire causing a cloud of white smoke. It was probably just coffee creamer or sugar…but it was cool! Then they announced the name of their story saying “The Tale of…” and whatever it was. Was I afraid of the dark? Nope…but you can sure bet that whatever story they were going to tell was going to freak me out. It didn’t stop me from watching it though because let’s face it. It wasn’t that scary.

What are you afraid of? Perhaps it’s bugs or snakes. I have a few friends that get freaked out by them. Anyone have a fear of heights or falling? I get a little nervous on rickety old ladders. Perhaps you’re afraid of someone dressed up in a costume. Lauren, my wife, can’t handle that very well. We went to Red Robin for a date one time and the person in the robin costume got a little too dangerously close to the table. I had to move the silverware away from her because I was concerned for that person’s safety. I didn’t want there to be a scene because I kind of like Red Robin and I wanted to be welcomed back. We all have those types of fears. Those things that sort of freak us out. What else are you afraid of though? I’m willing to bet there is more. Personally, I’m afraid that sometimes I’m not good enough. I’m also afraid that if I don’t work harder, or try and be more that I’ll fail those who are closest to me. We all have these types of fears too, deep within us, whether we know they are there or not. Their effects may not be noticeable, but they can have lasting impacts on the way that we interact with each other and the way that we interact with God.

One of my favorite sets of movies are the Star Wars movies. In the first movie of the newer trilogy, the Phantom Menace, young Anakin Skywalker is before the Jedi council for his testing. They sense fear within him and point it out. Anakin responds with “What’s that got to do with anything?” Then Master Yoda responds with this classic line: “Everything! Fear is the path to the Dark Side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering.” Fear leads to anger. When our fears take over our whole being and is the most prevalent thing, anger is close by. Fear can also immobilize us. We become like those characters in a scary movie. You know the one…the one the whole audience is yelling at to move, to run, to fight, “watch out,” do something! Don’t just stand there! When fear consumes and defines who we are it’s never a good thing. We’re stuck. We’re closed off. It’s really hard for there to be any peace.

The disciples in our gospel today are afraid and rightly so. They’re in a middle of a boat out in the dark, on the sea being hammered by a storm. The boat is filling up with water and they are bailing and working as hard as they can to keep the ship afloat. Many of them are sailors and have been doing this their whole life, but at this point nothing seems to be working. But Jesus is with them! Though he’s asleep… Out of their fear they wake him up, but they have already moved past just being afraid. If they were merely afraid they may have woken him up handed him a bucket and said something like “Yo, Jesus we could use your help here” or “Hey Jesus…Rabbi, do you mind waking up and helping?” Instead they are angry and center their fear and concern on him “Teacher, do you care that we are perishing?” They accuse Jesus of not caring.

Job also had his questions of God. The reading that we heard is God’s response, but what is important to note are the chapters and chapters before this where Job’s “friends” are dissing God and Job is wondering “God, why have you abandoned me? Things were going well and then you just up and left me to rot out here and die” Job also accused God out of his anger and fear. Both of these stories point to the fact that a great way to get God to respond is to be accusatory. Personally, I would prefer God’s response in Jesus versus the one from Job. If you know me, I like questions, but God’s questioning of Job would just be too much!

There is this interesting relationship between faith and fear or faith and anger. We tend to think of them in absolutes. You either have one or the other. In all truthfulness we can and often do have both. We can be angry at God because God can handle it. We can also be fearful, but still have faith in God. It’s when the fear becomes the dominant force, when the fear crowds out and replaces how God defines us that it becomes a problem. We can yell and scream and stomp our feet, shake our fists, cry and pitch the upmost tantrum at God and it’s alright. Those are natural emotions. It’s when we cross into the place where we look at the creator of the universe who loves us and cares for us and accuse God of not caring that things get complicated. In those moments we’re wrapped in ourselves. It’s all about us. We can’t see past our hurt and our pain.

It’s in those moments that God acts. Though it’s not how we expect. We need to be broken out of the place we are at and God comes to us and does just that. It’s in a way that shakes us up. God says “Peace! Be Still!” Thus, the title of the sermon. If I was one of the disciples on that boat and heard those words and saw the sea immediately become calm and the wind go away completely, I would need a new pair of pants. I can just see the disciple’s jaw dropping along with their arms that were busy bailing water just a few moments earlier. Maybe even one of them pinched or punched the guy next to him in the arm just to see if this was all for real. If God confronted me like Job and started asking me out of a whirlwind “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?”Right after God said “Gird up your loins like a man” I would be searching for a new something to gird my loins with. God knows that we can’t get out of where we are at sometimes. God knows we need help, but God will also want to know “Why are you afraid?”.

God first shakes us up, “Peace! Be Still!” and then when we find new pants and God has our attention God speaks to us: You are my precious child. I love you. I made you. I care for you more than you will ever know or understand. Why are you afraid? I am here with you. I am the one who made you. I am. Peace. Be still. Our fears that trapped us, that immobilized us, that made us angry are replaced by a different sort of fear. It’s called awe. We are in awe of a God who love us even when we are wrapped in ourselves. We are in awe of a God who is bigger than everything. We are in awe that God comes to us and cares enough to question us, to shake us up, to break us free. God has bigger plans for us than we can ever imagine for ourselves, beyond our dreams and beyond our fears.

That plan is for us as God’s children to go out and speak the words “Peace! Be Still!” in the world. To be a channel of peace.  To know that there is fear inside us all but despite that tell the story of a God that is way bigger. It’s God’s peace that we are channeling, not our own. We don’t go out to say “look at how peaceful I am, God gave this to me” but rather to go out and tell of a God who shook up our lives with a powerful word of peace. A God who loves and is doing some powerful things in this world. We are called to go and help to channel that. We won’t be perfect at it, but God is constantly calling us out. Giving us new reasons to search for new pants. Giving us reminders of how God is bigger than we are and that’s why God is God and we are not. Thanks be to God for that! May we pull on some new pants and go out to channel peace. May we be shaken up by God in new ways. And may we always receive reminders that God is bigger and God is more. Amen

Sermon on Acts 2:1-21 (Pentecost)

You’re Speaking My Language

Acts 2:1-21

This past Monday and Tuesday I traveled down to College Station on a road trip with John, Ruth, Mark and a member here at Shepherd of Life, Chad Chipman, to retrieve some furniture for Jody and Jo’Ann Smith. Chad was donating a lot of different items that were left to him from his mother, we just had to go down and get it out of storage. We picked up Chad from his home in North Richland Hills because of some car troubles he was having and then we were on our way. It was decided that Chad and I would ride down together because we both knew the area well and knew where we were going. Chad had lived in College Station while he had gone to Texas A&M and I was born in raised in Bryan which is right next to College Station. Beyond this fact, I think I had only met Chad once before and to my knowledge this was all we had in common. Boy, was I in for a surprise.

            As we drove the 3 hours to Bryan we talked about this and that. Sharing our interests and hobbies, stories and different memories. The more we talked the more we found we had things in common. You see, Chad grew up in Marlin, which is close to Bryan, so we essentially grew up in the same area. Talking with Chad was refreshing because he was speaking my language. He knew of many of the places I grew up around. He could relate to the different places I would talk about because he had memories and experiences there too. I did the same for him. We didn’t have to explain or go into great detail describing things. Somehow we both just knew and understood. We had never had any long conversations before this, but by the time we hit Waco it was like I was back home and had rediscovered an old friend.

            I think this was the main reason for the amazement and bewilderment of the crowds that gathered in our reading from Acts. On that first Pentecost all of them were travelers from all over those places with the funny names, but they all heard something in Jerusalem that sounded familiar…their own language. You would think they would be bewildered by the fire that was resting on everyone, but the story tells us that “at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each” It’s interesting that the fire and the loud wind, the things you would think would baffle them make only a small mention. What takes larger place are the people hearing these Galileans speaking their language.

            Language isn’t always the easiest form of communication. There’s some irony, considering we use language to communicate every day. There are about 6,000 spoken languages in the world though about 2,000 of those languages have less than 1,000 people speaking them. And that’s just a language you might use for everyday conversation! As you look at people’s interests and jobs the language gets even more muddled. Ask a technology guru about a computer’s video card and they’ll give you all sorts of information. Ask a business person about the market and they’ll tell you all about it. Ask an electrician about how a building is wired and you would learn more than you ever wanted to.

            I had an experience with this recently. Last weekend Lauren and I went to visit her cousin Alan and his family to celebrate their son’s birthday. Kevin just turned 8 and he loves playing a computer game called Minecraft. This game literally has its own language and different names for the different parts of the game like monstersin the game that come out during the night, the special types of minerals to mine and the special things to craft. For someone who didn’t really play the game it was a little hard to follow sometimes when Kevin would talk to me about it. He always talked so excitedly about it and described it so well that I had to check it out and play it with him. It was then that I understood how much fun Minecraft was and could understand the language better so that now I’m more in sync when Kevin talks to me about it.

            The same thing tends to happen when we try and share our faith with others. We use some really interesting language that people are often unfamiliar with. We may talk really excitedly with tons of passion, but that doesn’t erase the fact that there is a distinct language barrier. It could be that a lot of the words we use have baggage attached to them. Words such as church, Christian, ministry, grace, and even love, words we use all the time, mean different things to different people. When these words come out the barriers come up. We’re not speaking the same language. So then the answer is to change our language entirely. Throw out a little of this and a little of that to make way for some language that does make sense. Well, that might help a little bit. The beauty of the gospel is that each generation will read it and understand it in the context of their language, so some of the language used to share it will change naturally. But the beauty of the gospel is it is also timeless, some of the language doesn’t change.

            What is important to remember in all of this and it is easily overlooked is: that it is through God’s spirit within us that we are able to do any of this. Without the Holy Spirit coming to settle on the disciples at Pentecost there would have been no way that the entire crowd would have heard in their own language the message of “God’s deeds of power.” It would have just been a rabble of Galileans talking about things few could understand. With God’s spirit, they were able to speak to people in a language they could relate to. For some it was amazing, for others it just seemed like the disciples had found the good wine and had taken a bit too much of it. This story gives us a really interesting insight. We are the same way today. With God’s spirit we are able to do some amazing things. When we’re able to talk to people in their own language about faith it is guaranteed to look a little crazy to some folks.

            Even though you’ve heard quite a bit about this already, I see our “ Backyard” ministry as being a place where all of this culminates. I had the chance Wednesday to go out and play basketball with John, Mark and the youth from the apartments. While we were waiting to get some teams together it was interesting to see the facial expressions of some of the preschool parents as they picked up their children. From the outside looking in I bet it looks pretty strange to see three grown men hanging out and trying to keep up and play ball with these youth. What was also interesting about this week was the difference that I noticed in language. The guys seem to have their own unique way of describing and talking about things in a really comical way. They encourage each other and rag on each other in multiple ways, but never in a way that excludes anyone. They even gave Mark a cool compliment. They kept referring to him as Jason Kidd. Obviously they thought he was a pretty good ball player. Though we aren’t always on the same page with them and we’ll occasionally make a reference to something they won’t understand when we play basketball out there with them we are speaking the same language.

            That language is the language of love. It’s a universal language through which we can do some amazing and crazy looking things. With the help of the Holy Spirit and the faith to follow its guidance, we can speak the language of love into all of the dark places here in our communities, our relationships and in our world. Love is a language everyone understands. It can be expressed through spoken word, but it can also be expressed through action. Like the first disciples we can tell of God’s deeds of power: most importantly the power to overcome death and the grave so that we all might be drawn close to God. We can also show this through our actions. We are redeemed and given the power of the Holy Spirit. It’s not something that we’re meant to keep to ourselves, but to share freely with others. The language that we use might differ, but the message is still the same: God has come near and is working to establish a new kingdom. In you, in me, in our families, in our community and in our world. And under it all is the language that makes all things possible, love. May you go out this week and do something that amazes and bewilders people. May you remember the power of the spirit to do amazing things through each of you. And may you feel empowered to speak love into every dark place that you encounter. Amen.

Sermon on Luke 24:36b-48 (Easter 3)

Where have you seen Jesus?

Happy Easter! He is risen indeed Alleluia! Don’t look at me like I’m crazy…all the Sunday School kids took care of that last week. So maybe all the lilies are gone and we’re back in our normal routines, but it is the 3^rd Sunday in Easter and we heard another resurrection story today. Why not continue to celebrate!

Okay, okay. Perhaps it’s a bit much, but I’m not so sure of that. We can’t always keep the same Easter intensity going throughout the year. It would be crazy! What we can do is carry the resurrection farther than just outside the empty tomb on Easter morning.

Growing up the associate pastor at my home church, Pastor Grant, would always have us answer one question during our reflection time: Where have you seen Jesus this week? What she meant was where during your life, since we last met, have you seen someone or something that reminded you of Christ’s love, teaching or sacrifice. Talk about a tough question! As a junior high kid I probably rolled my eyes more times than not and struggled with how to answer. The beauty of this question is: there is no right or wrong answer, so many of our answers included a teacher, our parents or sometimes --- if we felt like we did something especially Christ-like --- ourselves. At the time, I didn’t understand the importance of this question. As I grew older I started to realize and be on the lookout more and more for the ways that Christ was truly present among my day to day life. And the eye-rolling continues! I now make it a priority to ask our Junior High and High School kids where they have seen God during their week. The answers vary, are never right or wrong and are always interesting to hear.

I always thought the disciples were really lucky to experience the risen Christ in flesh and blood, but even they had their doubts. They thought they were seeing a ghost the first time Jesus showed up! Even in their joy of seeing Jesus there was still disbelief and wonder. Often when we think about encountering Jesus it has to be on our own terms. When we go out to serve others, that’s where we are supposed to encounter Jesus. When we go out and enjoy nature, that’s where we are supposed to encounter Jesus. When we come here to worship, that’s where we are supposed to encounter Jesus. We would like to schedule out the encounter for Thursday at 4:30pm so we’re sure to be prepared.  If we see him anywhere else it’s like we’re experiencing a ghost! We’re terrified. It startles us. The encounter totally throws us off our game. Sometimes it’s like seeing someone you know from a certain place in a completely new place. It can be awkward and uncomfortable, but it doesn’t have to be.

It was like the time that I went to New Orleans with a travel team while working my first year at summer camp. It was the year after hurricane Katrina had devastated the city. Our travel teams were teams of staff members sent out to different places to lead Day Camp, just like we had come here last year. I was just learning guitar and for some odd reason I was selected to go on this really big adventure as, you guessed it, the guitarist. I was shocked and a little confused. I was really nervous about how my skills would work out. Little did I know that the kids at the two churches we worked with could care less. They were just as excited as we were to be there following the disaster. We had such a good time worshipping, learning and playing together that it didn’t matter whether I was any good. I was confused why I was being sent there, especially since I was still lacking, but after encountering Jesus in that place I knew the answer. It didn’t matter if I wasn’t the greatest guitar player ever. It didn’t even matter that I was a rookie staff member. What mattered was being with and loving others.

Jesus comes and stands among us saying “Peace be with you.” He shows us his hands and his feet so that we might know it is him in the flesh and blood. He also eats with us and opens our mind and shares with us the scripture so that we might understand. This often doesn’t happen when we choose it to. It happens again and again in the mundane and the everyday. Not with paranormal expression, but in flesh and blood. In the messiness of our world, our relationships and our lives the risen flesh and blood Christ is present speaking words of peace and love. Jesus is also calling us to be a witness to these things. What does that mean though?

I believe it simply means answering the question: where have you seen Jesus? By asking ourselves that question we continue to look for the risen Christ way beyond Easter morning. We open ourselves to the possibility that Jesus is right here among us in flesh and blood the whole time. When we look and point out where we see Jesus we lay claim to the promise that he is not dead, but is risen indeed. We point to a kingdom that is happening here and now, but also the kingdom that is still to come. We point out that love is stronger than death and fear and that resurrection can happen. What a beautiful thing to share with each other and the world! It doesn’t have to be about the biggest things, but it can have the biggest impact.

In February I traveled to New Orleans to attend my annual conference that I go to called Extravaganza. Part of the reason Extravaganza was held in New Orleans this year was to give the youth workers from around the ELCA the chance to see the city and plan before the National Gathering. While I was there I was witnessed to a lot. The witnessing came in the form of the many different restaurant owners, hotel staff and other people who were very excited that we were coming back in the summer. That’s not the response you would expect when talking about a massive group of teenagers. The work and witness that we had provided back in 2009 had left such an impact that the people of New Orleans were still witnessing about it three years later. There were a ton of things done, both big and small, while we were there last time that pointed to resurrection. Not as some far-off idea, but present in and through the flesh and blood of teenagers and the people of New Orleans. We got to experience both being Christ and seeing Christ.

Which is what we are called to do as witnesses. We are called to see Christ and be Christ. We are called to answer the question where have you seen Jesus and show the answer to others. We are called to be the answer to that question. We are called to go, but we are not alone for the risen Christ goes with us in many of the faces and interactions we will have this week. Where will you see Jesus this week? Amen

Reflection on the Crucifixion-Matthew 27: 27-44

As I began reflecting on this portion of Jesus’ passion story one question dominated my thinking: what should we focus on to best help us remember what our savior endured for us? Certainly one way would be to focus on all the violent action that takes place. The crown of thorns. The beating. The spitting. It seems as though Mel Gibson covered that pretty thoroughly for us. Another would be to focus on the process of crucifixion: outlining the reasons it was effective for the Romans, the painful things the body endures when nailed to a cross, and the slow death by asphyxiation. We could also remember the highly charged political nature of the entire situation. The false testimony. The shady witnesses. The political title that Jesus never took for himself, but was given to him. We could remember all these things, but what sort of impression would it leave on us? What is there left to remember if not the gruesome details? Many of the other details of the crucifixion point to what we can remember and connect with most in this story: the emotional pain. The writer focuses on and even repeats words that we have all had directed at us before. Derided. Taunted. Mocking. These are the things that are strongly emphasized throughout the whole account and they call our attention to our own times of being treated as “less than.” Jesus was made to wear a purple robe and bear a crown and a title “King of the Jews.” When have you been dressed up and made into something you’re not? Someone passing by, Simon from Cyrene, was forced to carry the cross.  Jesus probably witnessed and took notice of this. When has someone been made to carry your pain that didn’t deserve it? One of the key insults that the common person threw at Jesus was his prediction about the Temple. When have you had something you’ve said be thrown back in your face? The chief priests, scribes and elders all wanted to see the power happen on their own time in their own way. When has someone expected something out of you that you couldn’t give? This doesn’t just happen to us; we often times play the opposite role. We force others to experience these things. We expect others to be more. We throw things back in their face. We make them carry pain that they don’t deserve. We have it done to us, we do it to others and Jesus experienced all of it. Jesus experienced and suffered what we do to ourselves and to each other all the time, intentionally treating each other as less than. In the midst of all of this we are also given a reminder from an unlikely bunch: the chief priests, the scribes and the elders. Their reminder? Jesus is more. He is the King of Israel. He trusts in God. He saved others. Even in all the mocking and taunting the truth is there. He trusts in God. He saved others. We stand at the cross now, hearing the insults but also hearing and knowing the truth: He trusts in God. He saved others. He saved us. Thanks be to God. Amen