from my message on Sept. 29, 2013, from Matthew 9:35-10:4
Life is difficult. Life in Christ may be especially difficult. I have seen this article floating around for years, called the Lesson.
Then Jesus too his disciples up to the mountain and gathering them around him, he taught them, saying:
Blessed are the meek.
Blessed are they that mourn.
Blessed are the merciful.
Blessed are they who thirst for justice.
Blessed are you when persecuted.
Blessed are you when you suffer.
Be glad and rejoice, for your reward is great in heaven.
Then Simon Peter said, Do we have to write this down?
Andrew said, Are we supposed to know this?
And James said, Will we have a test on this?
And Bartholomew said, Do we have to turn this in?
And John said, The other disciples didn't have to learn this!
And Matthew said, When do we get out of here?
And Judas said, What does this have to do with real life?
Then one of the Pharisees present asked to see Jesus' lesson plans and inquired of Jesus his terminal objectives in the cognitive domain.
And Jesus wept.
Life is difficult. Those 3 words are how M. Scott Peck began his book, The Road Less Traveled. He was a psychiatrist dealing with all kinds of difficult people. He converted to Christianity as an adult. I heard him speak twice here in Austin years ago. He said that he became a follower of Christ, out of all the great world religions, because of the Jesus presented in the Gospels. If any other Jesus would have been presented, he wouldn't have believed, but the Jesus found there was often frustrated and was misunderstood even by his closest friends. Scott Peck could relate to that. It rang true. Life is Difficult.
Today, we continue our Life Coach series, where we place ourselves under God's guidance, where we gain wisdom from our holy book, the Bible, where we find the best way to live. Today, it is Jesus and the 12.
Jesus instructs as he goes along the road. He doesn't just play Houston and Dallas, but all the little towns, like Kyle and Buda. He is teaching in the synagogues; he is present in worship. He is preaching good news, not bad news, about the Kingdom of God. He is healing diseases. He has compassion like a shepherd does for his sheep.
Then he calls his disciples by name. Disciples are followers, students. He also calls them here apostles. Apostles are ones sent on a mission, emissaries for the one who sends. There is nothing extraordinary about them. They are only know by their family relations. Two are given not very favorable ascriptions, Matthew the tax collector and Judas who betrayed Jesus. They are people like us. They are us.
Jesus gives them, gives us, authority over evil spirits, the power to heal, the call to continue his ministry. We are sent on a mission. And it is sometimes difficult. J
Jesus taught best by his stories. I like to tell stories too. This past Tuesday and Wednesday, I did some continuing ed. with our Hispanic brothers and sisters here in Austin. YOu may not know it, but our English speaking Southwest Texas Conference of the UMC is uniting with the Spanish-speaking Rio Grande Conference. So this past week I was learning from my Hispanic colleagues about all kinds of wonderful ministries going on in our midst I had no idea about. Some of them talked about how sometimes the Latinos thought of themselves in terms of less than, as victims, as limited. The workshop was trying to focus on assets of being Hispanic, not deficits. One gentleman published a newspaper called La Voz. I picked it up and read a story in it. I told him I would have come to the workshop for the story alone.
The Touch of a Teacher
Juan's letter came today and now that I have read it, i will place it in my cedar chest with the other things that are important in my life. The letter started with I want you to be the first to know.
I smiled as I read the words he had written and my heart swelled with a pride I have no right to feel. I have not seen Juan Garza since he was a student in my class some 17 years ago. It was early in my teaching career. I had only been teaching 2 years bur form the first day he stepped into my classroom, I disliked Juan.
Teachers are not supposed to have favorites in a class, but most especially they are not to show a dislike for a particular child. I thought I was quie capable of handling my personal feelings along that line until Juan walked into my class.
I'm sorry to say it, but Juan Garza was 1 student I disliked. First of all he was dirty. Not just occasionally, but all of the time. Second, he smelled. he smelled like the crops he and his family were picking. His hair hung low over his ears and he actually had to hold it out of his eyes as he worked on assignments in class.
By the end of the first week of school, I knew he was hopelessly behind all the others. And not only was he behind, but he was also just plain slow. As each day passed, I began to withdraw from him. While I didn't actually ridicule the boy, my attitude was obviously apparent to the rest of the class for he quickly became the class goat, the outcast, the unloveable, the unloved.
He knew I didn't like him but he didn't know why. He also knew that other teachers in the school didn't like him either. As the days rolled on we made it through the fall festival, Halloween and Thanksgiving. By the time the Christmas season arrived I knew Juan was going to have to repeat the entire school year.
To justify holding him back I went to his cumulative folder from time to time. He had very low grades for the first 4 years but no grade failures. How he made it...I do not know. i closed my mind to the personal remarks written by other teachers over the years. Remarks like:
1st grade--Juan shows promise but has a poor situation at home.
2nd grade--Juan could do better, but his mother is terminally ill. He receives little help at home.
3rd grade--Juan is a pleasant boy, but misses too many days of school. Mother passed away at the end of the school year.
4th grade--Very slow but well behaved. Shows some talent for art. Father absent often. Believed to be working in California.
Well they passed him 4 times, but he will certainly repeat the 5th grade. "Do him good," I said to myself. The day before the holidays arrived we had a school Christmas party. Teachers always get gifts, fut for some reason this party seemed bigger and more elaborate than ever. There wasn't a student who hadn't brought me a gift. And each unwrapping brought squeals of delight as the students tried to guess who it was from.
Juan's gift wasn't the last one I picked up. In fact, it was somewhere in the middle of the pile. It's wrapping was accomplished with a brown paper bag. For decorations he had colored Christmas trees and bells all around it and used masking tape to hold it together. The tag said: For Miss Johnson from Juan.
The class was completely silent as I began to unwrap Juan's gift. As I removed the last bit of masking tape, 2 items fell out and onto my lap. One was a gaudy rhinestone bracelet with several stones missing. The second item was a bottle of dime store cologne that was half empty. I could hear the snickering and whispers of the other children. At first I was embarrassed. Then I thought, no...there is no reason for me to be embarrassed.
I looked at Juan and said, "Isn't this lovely?" I placed the bracelet on my wrist and asked him to help me fasten the clasp. There were a few oohs and aah's as I dabbed the cologne behind my ears. I continued to open gifts until I reached the bottom of the pile. we drank our refreshments and played games until the bell rang signaling the end of school for the holidays. Everyone gathered their belongings and filed out of the room with shouts of Merry Christmas. Everyone except Juan. He stayed behind.
With just us in the room, Juan walked toward my desk clutching his books. "You smell just like my mom," he said softly. "Her bracelet looks real pretty on you too. I'm glad you like it." Then he quickly left the room. I was in shock!
I locked the door to my classroom, and sat down at my desk. A million thoughts raced through my mind as I began to weep quietly. When the tears stopped I looked out the window for a long time. I reflected on the kind of teacher I was or had become. Then I realized what I needed to do if I dared to call myself a teacher. I resolved to make up for the way in which I had been treating Juan. For months I had deliberately deprived him of a teacher who truly cared.
Beginning in January, I stayed after school every afternoon with Juan. We did extra problems in math. We did extra work in reading and spelling. Slowly but surely, he started to improve. By April, he was really moving along. Even the other students noticed that something was very different about Juan. Only once did I panic when he missed several days of school. It turned out that he had to go work in the fields.
When the school year ended Juan had one of the highest averages in the class. Even though I knewhe would be leaving for California to work in the strawberry fields, I believed taht he had found a new confidence and outlook on what he could be.
I continued to teach and never again heard from Juan...until 7 years later. He wrote me from Watsonville California:
Dear Miss Johnson,
I wanted you to be the first to know, I will be graduating from high school next month, second in my class.
Very truly yours,
Juan Garza
What a surprise! I sent him a card of congratulations and a small pen and pencil set. Juan Garza, I wondered what he would do after graduation?
Four years later, Juan's second letter came. It had a postmark from Ann Arbor, Michigan:
Dear Miss Johnson,
I wanted you to be the first to know that I was informed I'll be graduating first in my class. The university has not been easy. Although I received a small scholarship from the farmworkers union, I had to work part-time al four years to help cover the costs. But I loved every minute of it.
Very truly yours,
Juan P. Garza
Juan is graduating form college? I thought back for a moment at how quickly the years had passed and the fact that he still remembered me. I also recalled that Christmas party. I decided to send him a nice pair of sterling silver monogram cuff links and a card. I was so very proud of him. The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor is one of the best schools in the world. He was doing good, very good!
Today, I received Juan's 3rd letter with a postmark for the Boston area. Like his other letters he started it with:
Dear Miss Johnson,
I wanted you to be the first to know, that as of this writing, I am now Juan P. Garza, M.D. How about that! Harvard was hard but I have no regrets. I will be returning to California to do residency at UCLA and work on pesticide issues as they effect farmworkers. And I am going to be married in July....the 27 to be exact. I wanted to ask you if you could come and sit where Mom would sit if she were here. I'll have no family present as Dad died last year. It would mean a lot to me. I can send you tickets.
Very truly yours,
Juan
I'm not sure what kind of gift one sends to a doctor upon completion of medical school. I'll have to think about it for a moment. But my note cannot wait:
Dear Juan,
Congratulations! You did it by yourself in spite of those like me, and not because of me. This day has come for you. God bless you. I'll be at that wedding with great joy.
Very truly yours,
Miss Johnson
Life may be difficult. It may be frustrating to follow Jesus. You may be misunderstood. We live in a world of overwhelming needs. But you can make a world of difference in you world of influence. That is the good news I have to share today.
Monday, September 30, 2013
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Mordecai and Esther: In Crisis
from my message on Sept. 22, 2013, from the book of Esther
I have a preacher friend who has a daughter named Caty. When Caty was small, her parents would say to her, "Caty, we need to get ready to go to church." Caty would ask, "What kind of church? Is it sit down and behave church or stand up and have fun church?"
Today, we have what I hope is stand up and have fun church, as we have the 5th in my series on Life Coach, where we learn from God and the Holy Bible the best way to live. Today we have the story of Mordecaia and Esthers. Our Jewish friends tell this tale at a holiday called Purim, usually in Feb. or March. It is told as a melodrama, with cheering for the good guys and booing for the bad guy.
Once upon a time, there was a king in Persia, name Ahasuerus. Since I can't pronounce this name, we will call him King. He threw a huge party, lasting not days or weeks but 6 months. He then commanded his queen Vashti to appear before his guests wearing her crown....with the implied message wearing only her crown. She refused, women-libber that she was. The king was mad. His counselors said he had to get rid of her as queen, and so he did. After the king cooled off, the counselors said that a good way to find a replacement queen was to hold a beauty contest. So letters were sent out to all 127 provinces to send the most beautiful candidates.
Now there was Mordecai, who had adopted his cousin, Esther, to be his daughter living in the land. He encouraged her to enter the beauty pagent, but to keep her identity a secret, because you see, they were Jewish. Guess who wins the contest? Esther! "Here she is ....Miss Persia."
About this time, Mordecai is at the city gate, where he overhears 2 guys plotting to assasinate the king. He tells Esther, who tells the king. The king has the criminals hanged. The king is saved. He is thankful, but promptly forgets who did this favor. It is written in the history book, but forgotten.
Every story need an antagonist, a bad guy. Ours is Haman (boo, hiss). The king makes him the #2 man in the whole kingdom, second only to the king. Haman (boo, hiss) likes to throw his weight around. He expects everyone to bow to him. Everyone does...except Mordecai, because he is Jewish. Haman (boo, hiss) decides to destroy Mordecai, and not only that, upon finding out he is Jewish, decides to destroy all the Jewish people in the land.
Haman (boo, hiss) gets the king to issue an edict to destroy all the Jews. He even pays money to see it happen. The timing of the massacre is determined by the rolling of dice, the casting of lots, called Pur. The day is set. Letters are sent out to all the provinces that this is going to happen.
Mordecai rends his garments. Hegoes to Esther to get her help. She says it is risky. One cannot just appear before the king uninvited. The king summons. If you go in, and he doesn't like you, you can be killed on the spot. Mordecai says it is a desperate time. Esther cannot be protected even if she is the queen. He says that if she cannot do anything, perhaps help for the Jews will come from another quarter. But who knows? Perhaps Esther has come for such a time as this. Esther asks all of the Jews to fast 3 days.
Esther approaches the king uninvited. The king holds out his scepter to her and welcomes her. He says, "I'll do anything for you, even give you up to half of my kingdom." Esther only asks that the king and Haman (boo, hiss) come to a feast she has prepared. At the feast, Esther asks that they come back the next day for another feast.
Haman (boo, hiss) is so delighted. He goes home bragging about the feast he had and the one to come. He still can't stand Mordecai and has gallows built upon which to hang him.
That night the king can't sleep. "Who was the one who saved my life from the assasins? Look it up in the history book." It is Mordecai. "Did I ever thank him?" No. The king sees Haman (boo, hiss) walking by. The king asks him, "What does a king do to show favor to someone?" Haman (boo, hiss), thinking the king is talking about him, says, "Why give him one of your royal robes, and crowns and horses. Then have someone walk before him announcing these tributes." The king says to Haman (boo, hiss), "Right then, you do these things for Mordecai!" (Laughter)
Haman (boo, hiss) and the king go to the feast with Esther. The king asks, "What can I do for you Esther? I will give you anything, up to 1/2 of my kingdom." Esther says, "Save me and my people from destruction. For there is one who wishes us harm?" "Who would do such a thing?" "Haman" (boo, hiss). The king is so angry he goes out to the garden. Haman (boo, hiss) throws himself upon Esther to beg for mercy. When the king comes in, it looks like Haman (boo, hiss) is assaulting Esther. The king has Haman (boo, hiss) hanged from the very gallows that Haman (boo, hiss) had built for Mordecai.
Esther approaches the king again. He can't reverse the earlier edict he issued. The Jews are still under threat. She gets the king to write another edict allowing the Jews to defend themselves. I wish that that was the end of the story.
What lessons can we learn in this Life Coach series? One, Mordecai and Esther showed courage and creativity in the midst of crisis. They used everything at their disposal--beauty, honesty, risk-taking.
Two, this is a story of hope for any oppressed group. Certainly our Jewish friends have claimed it down through the centuries, and most recently during the Holocaust. But it is a universal story of the longing for justice, for setting things right. The Tutsis oppressed by the Hutus, the people of Darfur oppressed by the Sudanese, the Armenians oppressed by the Turks, gay people oppressed by bullies.
Three, God is never mentioned in the story. It nearly didn't make it into the canon of scripture because of that. Maybe God is behind every scene in the story. Is that the way life is? We have to make God known by our words and actions.
Four, or is it that God wanted nothing to do with this story. You see if you read the rest of the story, the Jews kill 75,000 Persians. Frederick Buechner says that God doesn't want anything to do with the slaughter and so stays out of it.
Fifth, what is a Christian response to oppression? Can we break the cycle of violence begetting violence? What does a cross-shaped response look like? That is our challenge in life. Amen.
I have a preacher friend who has a daughter named Caty. When Caty was small, her parents would say to her, "Caty, we need to get ready to go to church." Caty would ask, "What kind of church? Is it sit down and behave church or stand up and have fun church?"
Today, we have what I hope is stand up and have fun church, as we have the 5th in my series on Life Coach, where we learn from God and the Holy Bible the best way to live. Today we have the story of Mordecaia and Esthers. Our Jewish friends tell this tale at a holiday called Purim, usually in Feb. or March. It is told as a melodrama, with cheering for the good guys and booing for the bad guy.
Once upon a time, there was a king in Persia, name Ahasuerus. Since I can't pronounce this name, we will call him King. He threw a huge party, lasting not days or weeks but 6 months. He then commanded his queen Vashti to appear before his guests wearing her crown....with the implied message wearing only her crown. She refused, women-libber that she was. The king was mad. His counselors said he had to get rid of her as queen, and so he did. After the king cooled off, the counselors said that a good way to find a replacement queen was to hold a beauty contest. So letters were sent out to all 127 provinces to send the most beautiful candidates.
Now there was Mordecai, who had adopted his cousin, Esther, to be his daughter living in the land. He encouraged her to enter the beauty pagent, but to keep her identity a secret, because you see, they were Jewish. Guess who wins the contest? Esther! "Here she is ....Miss Persia."
About this time, Mordecai is at the city gate, where he overhears 2 guys plotting to assasinate the king. He tells Esther, who tells the king. The king has the criminals hanged. The king is saved. He is thankful, but promptly forgets who did this favor. It is written in the history book, but forgotten.
Every story need an antagonist, a bad guy. Ours is Haman (boo, hiss). The king makes him the #2 man in the whole kingdom, second only to the king. Haman (boo, hiss) likes to throw his weight around. He expects everyone to bow to him. Everyone does...except Mordecai, because he is Jewish. Haman (boo, hiss) decides to destroy Mordecai, and not only that, upon finding out he is Jewish, decides to destroy all the Jewish people in the land.
Haman (boo, hiss) gets the king to issue an edict to destroy all the Jews. He even pays money to see it happen. The timing of the massacre is determined by the rolling of dice, the casting of lots, called Pur. The day is set. Letters are sent out to all the provinces that this is going to happen.
Mordecai rends his garments. Hegoes to Esther to get her help. She says it is risky. One cannot just appear before the king uninvited. The king summons. If you go in, and he doesn't like you, you can be killed on the spot. Mordecai says it is a desperate time. Esther cannot be protected even if she is the queen. He says that if she cannot do anything, perhaps help for the Jews will come from another quarter. But who knows? Perhaps Esther has come for such a time as this. Esther asks all of the Jews to fast 3 days.
Esther approaches the king uninvited. The king holds out his scepter to her and welcomes her. He says, "I'll do anything for you, even give you up to half of my kingdom." Esther only asks that the king and Haman (boo, hiss) come to a feast she has prepared. At the feast, Esther asks that they come back the next day for another feast.
Haman (boo, hiss) is so delighted. He goes home bragging about the feast he had and the one to come. He still can't stand Mordecai and has gallows built upon which to hang him.
That night the king can't sleep. "Who was the one who saved my life from the assasins? Look it up in the history book." It is Mordecai. "Did I ever thank him?" No. The king sees Haman (boo, hiss) walking by. The king asks him, "What does a king do to show favor to someone?" Haman (boo, hiss), thinking the king is talking about him, says, "Why give him one of your royal robes, and crowns and horses. Then have someone walk before him announcing these tributes." The king says to Haman (boo, hiss), "Right then, you do these things for Mordecai!" (Laughter)
Haman (boo, hiss) and the king go to the feast with Esther. The king asks, "What can I do for you Esther? I will give you anything, up to 1/2 of my kingdom." Esther says, "Save me and my people from destruction. For there is one who wishes us harm?" "Who would do such a thing?" "Haman" (boo, hiss). The king is so angry he goes out to the garden. Haman (boo, hiss) throws himself upon Esther to beg for mercy. When the king comes in, it looks like Haman (boo, hiss) is assaulting Esther. The king has Haman (boo, hiss) hanged from the very gallows that Haman (boo, hiss) had built for Mordecai.
Esther approaches the king again. He can't reverse the earlier edict he issued. The Jews are still under threat. She gets the king to write another edict allowing the Jews to defend themselves. I wish that that was the end of the story.
What lessons can we learn in this Life Coach series? One, Mordecai and Esther showed courage and creativity in the midst of crisis. They used everything at their disposal--beauty, honesty, risk-taking.
Two, this is a story of hope for any oppressed group. Certainly our Jewish friends have claimed it down through the centuries, and most recently during the Holocaust. But it is a universal story of the longing for justice, for setting things right. The Tutsis oppressed by the Hutus, the people of Darfur oppressed by the Sudanese, the Armenians oppressed by the Turks, gay people oppressed by bullies.
Three, God is never mentioned in the story. It nearly didn't make it into the canon of scripture because of that. Maybe God is behind every scene in the story. Is that the way life is? We have to make God known by our words and actions.
Four, or is it that God wanted nothing to do with this story. You see if you read the rest of the story, the Jews kill 75,000 Persians. Frederick Buechner says that God doesn't want anything to do with the slaughter and so stays out of it.
Fifth, what is a Christian response to oppression? Can we break the cycle of violence begetting violence? What does a cross-shaped response look like? That is our challenge in life. Amen.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Naomi and Ruth: Reverse Mentoring
from my message on 9/15/13 from Ruth 1:15-22
We all need a little help sometimes. Especially those of us who are of a certain age need some help with technology. Consider this cartoon "Zits" from this past week where the prents are confused over how to use the remote controls for the TV, DVD, satellite, whether they are even the right controls....and their teenage son in the background chewing his arm off in frustration.
I went to our Breakfast Crew this past Thursday morning with some 8 youth before they headed off to high school. I asked them if they had ever helped their parents or other adults. There were lots of technology examples: on the computer, showing them how to find files or to undo work with Crl + C; on smart phones, how to load apps, or turn off the alarm, or to send pictures. There was an example of a daughter teaching her mom the cup song (you will see it in a few weeks). Finally, one daughter offered fashion advice, "Yellow is not the new cool color."
This is reverse mentoring. It was championed by Jack Welch of General Electric. He found a younger person in the company to teach him how to use the computer and how to surf the internet. This person gave candid feedback and a fresh persective on things in the company. Reverse mentoring is not top down, not older to the younger, not more experienced to the less experienced, but exactly the opposite.
Today we find an example of reverse mentoring with Naomi and Ruth. This is the fourth in my series on Life Coach, where we go to the Bible to find examples of how best to live with God and others.
There are only 2 books in the Bible named after women. Today we have Ruth, written in simple Hebrew. A short book, only 4 chapters, only 74 verses. A Jewish scholar wrote it is like reading an afternoon soap opera. He went on to say that Naomi is like a female Job.
Here's the story. Naomi and her husband live in Bethlehem. What irony, for Bethlehem means "house of bread," and yet there is a famine in the land. Naomi's husband does not consult her, but simply uproots the family. They go to Edom, on the east side of the Dead Sea, the wrong side of the lake. The Edomites were considered cursed by the Hebrews. When the Hebrews were trying to enter the Promised Land, the Edomites showed them no hospitality. In fact, in the Hebrew scriptures it says that Edomites would be kept from the fellowship of the LORD unto 10 generations. In Edom, Naomi's sons marry Edomite women, but no children are born to these unions. Then her husband dies and 2 sons die. You can see why Naomi whose name means "pleasant" wants to be known as Mara, "bitter." NOw there are 3 widows in Edom. I am sorry, but it was a partriarchal society. Women had no standing outside of a male: a father, a husband, or some other kinsman. Therefore, Naomi wants to shed these 2 other vulnerable females, her daughters-in-law. She begs them to stay in Edom while she returns to Bethlehem. One daughter-in-law heeds her word. One doesn't. Ruth makes a vow, affirms her faith. Say these words with me:
Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die--there will I be buried. May the LORD do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you!
This is an example of reverse mentoring. The younger shows the way for the older. The less powerful to the more powerful. The foreigner to the Hebrew. The Moabitess Ruth mentors the Hebrew Naomi.
You want to know the rest of the story. Naomi and Ruth return to Bethlehem. They eke out a living getting gleanings from fields. However, there is a kinsman, named Boaz, whose name means "man of strength." Naomi encourages Ruth to go to the threshing floor at night where Boaz is asleep and get this...."uncover his feet." Now maybe that's all that happened, but Boaz soon marries Ruth. They have a son named Obed, who has a son named Jesse, who has a son named David. We know him as king David.
We sometimes learn the most about God through reverse mentoring. The teacher from the pupil, the parent from the child, the older from the younger. This is the way it is with our God.
King David is an example of reverse mentoring. He is not Samuel's first choice to be king. There are 6 older brothers who are passed over. David is the youngest, the runt of the litter. He is God's choice to be king.
Amos doesn't want to be a prophet, yet he goes at the LORD's leading to the other kingdom, and proclaims a word. When confronted, Amos says, I am not a prophet or the son of a prophet, only a herdsman and dresser of sycamore trees. Reverse mentoring.
Jesus comes along, not being born into wealth or power, but as a son of a carpenter in a backwater village in an out of the way country. Jesus practices reverse mentoring in his ministry. Crowds are hungry on a hillside, and it is a child who shares his lunch who initiates a miracle of feeding the thousands. Jesus tells a story of a man getting beat up and left for dead by robbers. A priest (ouch!) and a Levite walk on by, and who stops to help? A distasteful Samaritan. We have come to call him the "good" Samaritan. Reverse mentoring is maybe the best way we learn about God's ways.
I have a story of reverse mentoring that comes from the church I formerly served, Portland UMC down on the coast, near Corpus Christi. In the month of October, we ran a pumpkin patch. A big truck would unload a bunch of orange pumpkins on our lawn. People would come by to purchase them. Families would come by to get pictures of their children with the pumpkins. One night, 4 youth came by, and emulated a musical group called "Smashing Pumpkins." They got caught by the police. Our church was nearly all white. These 4 were of a different race. I was at their hearing. We came up with community service for their restitution. They were assigned to help us in a program called Surving the Night. Once a month, our church prepared meals for the homeless in Corpus Christi, much like Mobile Loaves and Fishes here. For months, these youth worked alongside of our church members. One month, the people from our church who came to do Surviving the Night were all first-timers, all "newbies." They didn't know what to do. The 4 youth said, "Here's how you make the sandwiches, fix the soup, prepare the drinks." They went on the trucks and said, "Here's where you stop. Here's how much you give each person." The criminals, the youth became our mentors.
At the 9 a.m. service, Guy told a story, totally spontaneously of how his son got started at our church in the confirmation class. About that time the tragedy of 9/11 hit. The youth led a worship service sometime later. Guy's son, Will, stood up and prayed for reconciliation between Christians and Muslims. Guy thought, "I need to get my act together." He started coming to worship here. Now he plays bass guitar in the Foundation band.
At the 11:15 service, again spontaneously, Eddie told the story of his daughter Ruby, who agreed as a senior to watch over some incoming freshman girls from our church. The "big" was supposed to take care of the "littles." But Ruby has not been active in church. Her littles invited her to Breakfast Crew. Ruby attended this past Thursday. The "littles" showed the way for the "big."
Sometimes we learn best about God from reverse mentoring. Today we have the example of Ruth doing that for Naomi. Our God is like a Moabitess widow clinging to her mother-in-law, sharing her faith, showing her the way.
We all need a little help sometimes. Especially those of us who are of a certain age need some help with technology. Consider this cartoon "Zits" from this past week where the prents are confused over how to use the remote controls for the TV, DVD, satellite, whether they are even the right controls....and their teenage son in the background chewing his arm off in frustration.
I went to our Breakfast Crew this past Thursday morning with some 8 youth before they headed off to high school. I asked them if they had ever helped their parents or other adults. There were lots of technology examples: on the computer, showing them how to find files or to undo work with Crl + C; on smart phones, how to load apps, or turn off the alarm, or to send pictures. There was an example of a daughter teaching her mom the cup song (you will see it in a few weeks). Finally, one daughter offered fashion advice, "Yellow is not the new cool color."
This is reverse mentoring. It was championed by Jack Welch of General Electric. He found a younger person in the company to teach him how to use the computer and how to surf the internet. This person gave candid feedback and a fresh persective on things in the company. Reverse mentoring is not top down, not older to the younger, not more experienced to the less experienced, but exactly the opposite.
Today we find an example of reverse mentoring with Naomi and Ruth. This is the fourth in my series on Life Coach, where we go to the Bible to find examples of how best to live with God and others.
There are only 2 books in the Bible named after women. Today we have Ruth, written in simple Hebrew. A short book, only 4 chapters, only 74 verses. A Jewish scholar wrote it is like reading an afternoon soap opera. He went on to say that Naomi is like a female Job.
Here's the story. Naomi and her husband live in Bethlehem. What irony, for Bethlehem means "house of bread," and yet there is a famine in the land. Naomi's husband does not consult her, but simply uproots the family. They go to Edom, on the east side of the Dead Sea, the wrong side of the lake. The Edomites were considered cursed by the Hebrews. When the Hebrews were trying to enter the Promised Land, the Edomites showed them no hospitality. In fact, in the Hebrew scriptures it says that Edomites would be kept from the fellowship of the LORD unto 10 generations. In Edom, Naomi's sons marry Edomite women, but no children are born to these unions. Then her husband dies and 2 sons die. You can see why Naomi whose name means "pleasant" wants to be known as Mara, "bitter." NOw there are 3 widows in Edom. I am sorry, but it was a partriarchal society. Women had no standing outside of a male: a father, a husband, or some other kinsman. Therefore, Naomi wants to shed these 2 other vulnerable females, her daughters-in-law. She begs them to stay in Edom while she returns to Bethlehem. One daughter-in-law heeds her word. One doesn't. Ruth makes a vow, affirms her faith. Say these words with me:
Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die--there will I be buried. May the LORD do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you!
This is an example of reverse mentoring. The younger shows the way for the older. The less powerful to the more powerful. The foreigner to the Hebrew. The Moabitess Ruth mentors the Hebrew Naomi.
You want to know the rest of the story. Naomi and Ruth return to Bethlehem. They eke out a living getting gleanings from fields. However, there is a kinsman, named Boaz, whose name means "man of strength." Naomi encourages Ruth to go to the threshing floor at night where Boaz is asleep and get this...."uncover his feet." Now maybe that's all that happened, but Boaz soon marries Ruth. They have a son named Obed, who has a son named Jesse, who has a son named David. We know him as king David.
We sometimes learn the most about God through reverse mentoring. The teacher from the pupil, the parent from the child, the older from the younger. This is the way it is with our God.
King David is an example of reverse mentoring. He is not Samuel's first choice to be king. There are 6 older brothers who are passed over. David is the youngest, the runt of the litter. He is God's choice to be king.
Amos doesn't want to be a prophet, yet he goes at the LORD's leading to the other kingdom, and proclaims a word. When confronted, Amos says, I am not a prophet or the son of a prophet, only a herdsman and dresser of sycamore trees. Reverse mentoring.
Jesus comes along, not being born into wealth or power, but as a son of a carpenter in a backwater village in an out of the way country. Jesus practices reverse mentoring in his ministry. Crowds are hungry on a hillside, and it is a child who shares his lunch who initiates a miracle of feeding the thousands. Jesus tells a story of a man getting beat up and left for dead by robbers. A priest (ouch!) and a Levite walk on by, and who stops to help? A distasteful Samaritan. We have come to call him the "good" Samaritan. Reverse mentoring is maybe the best way we learn about God's ways.
I have a story of reverse mentoring that comes from the church I formerly served, Portland UMC down on the coast, near Corpus Christi. In the month of October, we ran a pumpkin patch. A big truck would unload a bunch of orange pumpkins on our lawn. People would come by to purchase them. Families would come by to get pictures of their children with the pumpkins. One night, 4 youth came by, and emulated a musical group called "Smashing Pumpkins." They got caught by the police. Our church was nearly all white. These 4 were of a different race. I was at their hearing. We came up with community service for their restitution. They were assigned to help us in a program called Surving the Night. Once a month, our church prepared meals for the homeless in Corpus Christi, much like Mobile Loaves and Fishes here. For months, these youth worked alongside of our church members. One month, the people from our church who came to do Surviving the Night were all first-timers, all "newbies." They didn't know what to do. The 4 youth said, "Here's how you make the sandwiches, fix the soup, prepare the drinks." They went on the trucks and said, "Here's where you stop. Here's how much you give each person." The criminals, the youth became our mentors.
At the 9 a.m. service, Guy told a story, totally spontaneously of how his son got started at our church in the confirmation class. About that time the tragedy of 9/11 hit. The youth led a worship service sometime later. Guy's son, Will, stood up and prayed for reconciliation between Christians and Muslims. Guy thought, "I need to get my act together." He started coming to worship here. Now he plays bass guitar in the Foundation band.
At the 11:15 service, again spontaneously, Eddie told the story of his daughter Ruby, who agreed as a senior to watch over some incoming freshman girls from our church. The "big" was supposed to take care of the "littles." But Ruby has not been active in church. Her littles invited her to Breakfast Crew. Ruby attended this past Thursday. The "littles" showed the way for the "big."
Sometimes we learn best about God from reverse mentoring. Today we have the example of Ruth doing that for Naomi. Our God is like a Moabitess widow clinging to her mother-in-law, sharing her faith, showing her the way.
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Elijah and Elisha: Mentoring
from my message from II Kings 2:1-4, on September 8, 2013
I think I look pretty good in this suit. I think we followers of Christ all look our best in hand-me-down clothes. More about this at the end of the sermon today.
This is the 3rd in my series on Life Coach. We are looking at examples from the Bible on how to live well. Today it is Elijah and Elisha, a classic example of mentoring, as the mantle of leadership is passed from one to the other. Modern day examples are of a coach to a player, a master to a student, a teacher to a pupil, one older and wiser to one not so much.
I thought it would be good to hear from an actual coach about her experince of mentoring as well as how she has been mentored. Please pay attention to the video. (Jennifer White who coached at the college level for 19 years)
In just a moment I want you to visit in groups of 2 or 3 about someone who has been a mentor to you. We get the word "mentor" from the Greek play, the "Odyssey." Mentor was a character who offered advice and wisdom to others. Take 3 minutes now to share with a person near you one who has counseled you or taught you or modeled for you in business, education, life, and especially the Christian faith.
(I sing the Doxology to bring this to a close) We are thankful for our mentors.
Back to the biblical story. I need to teach you a bit of Hebrew. When you see the word "El" in a name, it means God. The "i" means "my." So Eli means "My God." Elijah means "My God is the Yahweh," or "My God is the LORD." Elisha means "My God is salvation." So My God is the LORD mentors My God is salvation.
Notice the course in mentoring. Elijah tells Elisha to stay put. Elisha refuses. "I will go where you go." This happens 3 times. Like last week's story, 3 times make sure we get it. If you plot their journey on a map, you will find that they wander around in the Jordan River valley. It is not a straight line. Therefore, it is not about a route, but a relationship. It is not a where, but a who. Then there are the people on the sidelines who taunt. The companies of prophets tell Elisha to give up, but he doesn't. I know that this never happens us today as we try to follow Jesus. People don't us that we're stupid, or going the wrong way. Oh....they do.
Then comes this wonderful scene where Elijah asks a probing question, "What may I do for you?" It is almost like finding a genie in a bottle. What would you ask for? Money, fame, power? Notice what Elisha asks for, "I want to inherit a double portion of your spirit."
You may think he is asking for twice the spirit that Elijah has, but it means something else. In the Bible times, the older son got 2/3 of the estate and the younger son got but 1/3. I know it doesn't seem fair, but that's the way it was. By asking for a double portion, Elisha is asking to be Elijah's eldest son. He is saying, "I want you to be my spiritual father. I want to carry on your work." And when the time comes for Elijah to be carried up into heaven in a whirlwind, Elisha shouts, "Father, father."
Then Elisha takes up Elijah's mantle. I looked it up. A mantle was like an overcoat, or an outer covering. One size fit all. If you were shorter or smaller, you tucked it up with a rope belt or pinned it together with a brooch. At night you could wrap it around you in your sleep. Elisha takes up Elijah's mantle and immediately begins to do the things that Elijah did. He strikes the water, and it parts. The mantle of leadership has been passed.
You may be saying, "What does this have to do with us today?" We United Methodists have a big meeting every year cleverly called annual conference. Some 1200 clergy and lay delegates from some 350 churches in south Texas gather to do our church business and worship together. In one of those worship settings, this passage of scripture is read. Then one of the retiring pastors takes his or her stole and places it on one of those about to be ordained. The one to be ordained says, "Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit."
It is good to wear hand-me-down clothes. Here is my stole that was placed on me in June of 1980 as I was ordained an elder in the United Methodist Church at Travis Park UMC in San Antonio.
Now this suit that I wear. I look good in it, don't I? You know I wrote a novel while on my renewal leave. It is called "The Last Kiss," about a hospice chaplain that carries a fatal disease.... I can't give away too much. Please come on Sunday, September 22, for our "thank you lunch" when I will read you a chapter or two. Anyhow, I gather with 4 other pastors every other Monday for breakfast, so that we can hold each other accountable and pray for one another. Two weeks ago when we met, I read them a chapter. One of my pastor friends, said, "I'm working on a novel too. It is called, 'Dead Preachers' Clothes.'" What does that mean. He said, "So many times in my ministry, a widow of a pastor has come to me, and said, "Jim, you were about his size. He has so many suits. Would you like one?'" He now has a closet full of dead preachers' clothes.
This suit that I am wearing came for Ben Feemster, a UM pastor who served in the Dallas and Ft. Worth area. He was a mentor to me. He passed the mantle of leadership on to me. I think I look good in his suit. In my clothing are also Claus Rohlfs and Mal Hierholzer and many others.
Whose clothes are you wearing? We have already given thanks for our mentors. Now the question is to whom will you give your clothes? Whom are your mentoring. We need lots of teachers, leaders, helpers right now in our children's Sunday School classes and youth classes and Bible Studies. Please let me know if you are being called to this ministry.
The good news is that we look our best when we were hand-me-down clothes. The good news is that we are at our best when we pass them on. Amen.
I think I look pretty good in this suit. I think we followers of Christ all look our best in hand-me-down clothes. More about this at the end of the sermon today.
This is the 3rd in my series on Life Coach. We are looking at examples from the Bible on how to live well. Today it is Elijah and Elisha, a classic example of mentoring, as the mantle of leadership is passed from one to the other. Modern day examples are of a coach to a player, a master to a student, a teacher to a pupil, one older and wiser to one not so much.
I thought it would be good to hear from an actual coach about her experince of mentoring as well as how she has been mentored. Please pay attention to the video. (Jennifer White who coached at the college level for 19 years)
In just a moment I want you to visit in groups of 2 or 3 about someone who has been a mentor to you. We get the word "mentor" from the Greek play, the "Odyssey." Mentor was a character who offered advice and wisdom to others. Take 3 minutes now to share with a person near you one who has counseled you or taught you or modeled for you in business, education, life, and especially the Christian faith.
(I sing the Doxology to bring this to a close) We are thankful for our mentors.
Back to the biblical story. I need to teach you a bit of Hebrew. When you see the word "El" in a name, it means God. The "i" means "my." So Eli means "My God." Elijah means "My God is the Yahweh," or "My God is the LORD." Elisha means "My God is salvation." So My God is the LORD mentors My God is salvation.
Notice the course in mentoring. Elijah tells Elisha to stay put. Elisha refuses. "I will go where you go." This happens 3 times. Like last week's story, 3 times make sure we get it. If you plot their journey on a map, you will find that they wander around in the Jordan River valley. It is not a straight line. Therefore, it is not about a route, but a relationship. It is not a where, but a who. Then there are the people on the sidelines who taunt. The companies of prophets tell Elisha to give up, but he doesn't. I know that this never happens us today as we try to follow Jesus. People don't us that we're stupid, or going the wrong way. Oh....they do.
Then comes this wonderful scene where Elijah asks a probing question, "What may I do for you?" It is almost like finding a genie in a bottle. What would you ask for? Money, fame, power? Notice what Elisha asks for, "I want to inherit a double portion of your spirit."
You may think he is asking for twice the spirit that Elijah has, but it means something else. In the Bible times, the older son got 2/3 of the estate and the younger son got but 1/3. I know it doesn't seem fair, but that's the way it was. By asking for a double portion, Elisha is asking to be Elijah's eldest son. He is saying, "I want you to be my spiritual father. I want to carry on your work." And when the time comes for Elijah to be carried up into heaven in a whirlwind, Elisha shouts, "Father, father."
Then Elisha takes up Elijah's mantle. I looked it up. A mantle was like an overcoat, or an outer covering. One size fit all. If you were shorter or smaller, you tucked it up with a rope belt or pinned it together with a brooch. At night you could wrap it around you in your sleep. Elisha takes up Elijah's mantle and immediately begins to do the things that Elijah did. He strikes the water, and it parts. The mantle of leadership has been passed.
You may be saying, "What does this have to do with us today?" We United Methodists have a big meeting every year cleverly called annual conference. Some 1200 clergy and lay delegates from some 350 churches in south Texas gather to do our church business and worship together. In one of those worship settings, this passage of scripture is read. Then one of the retiring pastors takes his or her stole and places it on one of those about to be ordained. The one to be ordained says, "Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit."
It is good to wear hand-me-down clothes. Here is my stole that was placed on me in June of 1980 as I was ordained an elder in the United Methodist Church at Travis Park UMC in San Antonio.
Now this suit that I wear. I look good in it, don't I? You know I wrote a novel while on my renewal leave. It is called "The Last Kiss," about a hospice chaplain that carries a fatal disease.... I can't give away too much. Please come on Sunday, September 22, for our "thank you lunch" when I will read you a chapter or two. Anyhow, I gather with 4 other pastors every other Monday for breakfast, so that we can hold each other accountable and pray for one another. Two weeks ago when we met, I read them a chapter. One of my pastor friends, said, "I'm working on a novel too. It is called, 'Dead Preachers' Clothes.'" What does that mean. He said, "So many times in my ministry, a widow of a pastor has come to me, and said, "Jim, you were about his size. He has so many suits. Would you like one?'" He now has a closet full of dead preachers' clothes.
This suit that I am wearing came for Ben Feemster, a UM pastor who served in the Dallas and Ft. Worth area. He was a mentor to me. He passed the mantle of leadership on to me. I think I look good in his suit. In my clothing are also Claus Rohlfs and Mal Hierholzer and many others.
Whose clothes are you wearing? We have already given thanks for our mentors. Now the question is to whom will you give your clothes? Whom are your mentoring. We need lots of teachers, leaders, helpers right now in our children's Sunday School classes and youth classes and Bible Studies. Please let me know if you are being called to this ministry.
The good news is that we look our best when we were hand-me-down clothes. The good news is that we are at our best when we pass them on. Amen.
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Samuel and Eli: Do You Hear What I Hear?
from my message on 9/1/13, from I Sam. 3:1-18, part of my Life Coach Series
"In those days, the word of the Lord was rarely heard." That's what the scripture says. May be true for our days as well. Do you think it was because the Lord has stopped speaking? Or was it because the people had stopped listening? Yeah, I think it was the latter also. People had grown hard of hearing...the Lord.
I don't want to make light of hearing problems. I will tell you a funny story from my early ministry. One Sunday, one of my older men was paying me rapt attention while I was preaching in San Saba. He was intent of every word. He gave me extreme eye contact. Later that week I happened to be visiting in his home. I complimented him on his listening to the message. He smiled. His wife said, "Jack forgot his hearing aids that morning!"
Many people have hearing problems. I did some research this past week. 36 million Americans or 17% of our population have some degree of hearing loss. But as we get older, some 47% of those over 75 years of age have impairment. One of them is my mom. I got to spend a lot of time with her this summer. One of the things she asked me to do was to install a Bose sound system for her TV. She said that she was having a hard time making out the British accents on Masterpiece Mystery on PBS on Sunday nights. When I called her yesterday, she had been to see a doctor of audiology and had gotten fitted for hearing aids.
It is not funny. People who suffer hearing loss can become depressed, frustrated, and embarrassed. They can appear confused, unresponsive, and uncooperative. As a church we have just installed a hearing assistant system.
In our scripture, the hearing loss is not due to a genetic or biological or accidental cause. It is a spiritual disease.
Imagine this boys and girls. Samuel is only 7 or 8 years old. His mom, said that if she ever had a child, she would dedicate him to the Lord. That's how Samuel came to be living at the temple of the Lord. In fact, Samuel was sleeping before the ark of the covenant. Boys and girls, that would be like you sleeping in front of the altar here at church every night with only a candle burning. How do you think you would feel? I bet a little bit scared.
Samuel didn't really expect the Lord to speak though. He was a child, but he could see and hear things. He saw how old and doddering Eli was. He saw how Eli's sons abused their position of authority, taking advantage of women who came to the shrine. Surely, the Lord wouldn't speak in such a rotten place. We can almost hear him thinking to himself, "My mom dedicated me this work? To this place?"
So when a voice in the night comes, Samuel thinks it is the old man, Eli. Now I am 60 years old, and I am probably the only man here that the following happens to, but sometimes I have to get up in the middle of the night. Can't sleep. Have to go to the bathroom. Get a drink of water. So surely it is just Eli wandering around in the middle of the night.
"You called me Eli?" Samuel approaches Eli. Eli is frustrated. "Not me. Leave me alone. I didn't call you." There is some humor involved here. Three times the same thing happens. Samuel and Eli getting on each other's nerves.
Finally, Eli gets it. He gives Samuel the key. It is also what you need to take home from this sermon. "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." When we figure it out that it is the Lord speaking, we need to pause, adopt an attitude of listening, and wait.
It is not that we are hard of hearing. It is that we may not be listening at all. When do you pause? When do you say, "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening?" Maybe this time of worship is more important that we sometimes think. Maybe the silence in worship is the most valuable time of all. It is a time when we can listen to the Lord.
The psalmist says, "Be still and know that I am God." How rare it is for us to be still.
It is hard for us to listen today, because there is so much noise around us. Can I get an Amen? All of our busyness, we wake up with the radio and TV news, tied to the computer, the phone ringing, the office gossip, the neighborhood gossip, our iPods. Even if we grow quiet, then there is that inner critic, you know that inner voice that accuses you. My inner critic says, "You will never be good enough." It is hard to hear the Lord over that accusing voice.
How, when, where can you practice listening to God? I get up early in the morning and go to scripture. I stay with it until there is a verse, a short phrase that sticks with me, that becomes my breath prayer for the day. I try to breathe it in and out throughout the day to stay centered, to stay listening. You can find my breath prayers by following me on Twitter and at our church website.
You may find having a written guide will be a help. I have several devotional guides here with me today and in my office that I can recommend. Many of you use the Upper Room. I once had a woman in my congregation call the Upper Room our United Methodist horoscope! There is a scripture each day, a written reflection, and a prayer. See if it helps you to listen.
Samuel needed Eli to help him listen. And then Eli needed Samuel to help him listen. We often need someone else to help guide us in listening for the Lord. What Samuel said to Eli was harsh. The word we receive is not always easy or pleasant. We need someone else to help us process it, to get the truth about God and us. It may a friend, a pastor, a spiritual director, a Bible study leader, a Sunday school teacher, a neighbor, a Stephen minister. We often need a guide.
I have received training in being a spiritual director. That means that I will pray with you and help you discern how God is moving in your life. But what I have learned is this: God is the ultimate spiritual director. Notice the persistence of God in this passage. God won't just come once. God won't just whisper. God will keep coming until we get the message. For you, the listening may come through a verse of scripture, or a song, or a dream, or a hardship, or a worship service, or a mission project. What I know is that God does not give up on getting the message through to us. The Lord is our primary Life Coach.
Our response is "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." That is the good news I have to share today.
"In those days, the word of the Lord was rarely heard." That's what the scripture says. May be true for our days as well. Do you think it was because the Lord has stopped speaking? Or was it because the people had stopped listening? Yeah, I think it was the latter also. People had grown hard of hearing...the Lord.
I don't want to make light of hearing problems. I will tell you a funny story from my early ministry. One Sunday, one of my older men was paying me rapt attention while I was preaching in San Saba. He was intent of every word. He gave me extreme eye contact. Later that week I happened to be visiting in his home. I complimented him on his listening to the message. He smiled. His wife said, "Jack forgot his hearing aids that morning!"
Many people have hearing problems. I did some research this past week. 36 million Americans or 17% of our population have some degree of hearing loss. But as we get older, some 47% of those over 75 years of age have impairment. One of them is my mom. I got to spend a lot of time with her this summer. One of the things she asked me to do was to install a Bose sound system for her TV. She said that she was having a hard time making out the British accents on Masterpiece Mystery on PBS on Sunday nights. When I called her yesterday, she had been to see a doctor of audiology and had gotten fitted for hearing aids.
It is not funny. People who suffer hearing loss can become depressed, frustrated, and embarrassed. They can appear confused, unresponsive, and uncooperative. As a church we have just installed a hearing assistant system.
In our scripture, the hearing loss is not due to a genetic or biological or accidental cause. It is a spiritual disease.
Imagine this boys and girls. Samuel is only 7 or 8 years old. His mom, said that if she ever had a child, she would dedicate him to the Lord. That's how Samuel came to be living at the temple of the Lord. In fact, Samuel was sleeping before the ark of the covenant. Boys and girls, that would be like you sleeping in front of the altar here at church every night with only a candle burning. How do you think you would feel? I bet a little bit scared.
Samuel didn't really expect the Lord to speak though. He was a child, but he could see and hear things. He saw how old and doddering Eli was. He saw how Eli's sons abused their position of authority, taking advantage of women who came to the shrine. Surely, the Lord wouldn't speak in such a rotten place. We can almost hear him thinking to himself, "My mom dedicated me this work? To this place?"
So when a voice in the night comes, Samuel thinks it is the old man, Eli. Now I am 60 years old, and I am probably the only man here that the following happens to, but sometimes I have to get up in the middle of the night. Can't sleep. Have to go to the bathroom. Get a drink of water. So surely it is just Eli wandering around in the middle of the night.
"You called me Eli?" Samuel approaches Eli. Eli is frustrated. "Not me. Leave me alone. I didn't call you." There is some humor involved here. Three times the same thing happens. Samuel and Eli getting on each other's nerves.
Finally, Eli gets it. He gives Samuel the key. It is also what you need to take home from this sermon. "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." When we figure it out that it is the Lord speaking, we need to pause, adopt an attitude of listening, and wait.
It is not that we are hard of hearing. It is that we may not be listening at all. When do you pause? When do you say, "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening?" Maybe this time of worship is more important that we sometimes think. Maybe the silence in worship is the most valuable time of all. It is a time when we can listen to the Lord.
The psalmist says, "Be still and know that I am God." How rare it is for us to be still.
It is hard for us to listen today, because there is so much noise around us. Can I get an Amen? All of our busyness, we wake up with the radio and TV news, tied to the computer, the phone ringing, the office gossip, the neighborhood gossip, our iPods. Even if we grow quiet, then there is that inner critic, you know that inner voice that accuses you. My inner critic says, "You will never be good enough." It is hard to hear the Lord over that accusing voice.
How, when, where can you practice listening to God? I get up early in the morning and go to scripture. I stay with it until there is a verse, a short phrase that sticks with me, that becomes my breath prayer for the day. I try to breathe it in and out throughout the day to stay centered, to stay listening. You can find my breath prayers by following me on Twitter and at our church website.
You may find having a written guide will be a help. I have several devotional guides here with me today and in my office that I can recommend. Many of you use the Upper Room. I once had a woman in my congregation call the Upper Room our United Methodist horoscope! There is a scripture each day, a written reflection, and a prayer. See if it helps you to listen.
Samuel needed Eli to help him listen. And then Eli needed Samuel to help him listen. We often need someone else to help guide us in listening for the Lord. What Samuel said to Eli was harsh. The word we receive is not always easy or pleasant. We need someone else to help us process it, to get the truth about God and us. It may a friend, a pastor, a spiritual director, a Bible study leader, a Sunday school teacher, a neighbor, a Stephen minister. We often need a guide.
I have received training in being a spiritual director. That means that I will pray with you and help you discern how God is moving in your life. But what I have learned is this: God is the ultimate spiritual director. Notice the persistence of God in this passage. God won't just come once. God won't just whisper. God will keep coming until we get the message. For you, the listening may come through a verse of scripture, or a song, or a dream, or a hardship, or a worship service, or a mission project. What I know is that God does not give up on getting the message through to us. The Lord is our primary Life Coach.
Our response is "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." That is the good news I have to share today.
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