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Sermon - November 12th, 2006
God Has Put His Hand On You
Laura Lillegard
Scripture: I Thessalonians 1: 1 – 10
Laity Sunday
Back in October Mary Foote asked me if I would be interested in speaking on Laity Sunday and I told her that I would have to think about it. I don’t know if you people realize this, but you are kind of intimidating; a sea of faces out there. I’ve been up here and read scripture a few times so I’m familiar with the view. I’ve had a sneak peek.
The week before Mary e-mailed me for my final answer I had been working on the Stewardship Campaign and it seemed that every piece of paper I handled had the words “Be Bold” on them. So when THE e-mail came, how could I say “No”?
I had a chance to talk to Mac McCallum this week, many of you know he is a veteran of these Laity Sunday’s and he gave me lots of advice, but the two things that stuck with me are: One – if I just showed up people would be impressed and two, when I asked Mac if he ever wore a dress, he said “no”. I felt much better after talking to him.
In the scripture passage that was read today, Paul is praising the church at Thessalonica. He says “Every time we think of you, we thank God for you.” And then he goes on to say, “It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves you very much, but has put his hand on you for something special.” Wouldn’t it be great to receive a message like that? That is plain and simple. The scriptures are filled with examples of individuals being called by God with signs too obvious to ignore. There is Noah, whom God instructed to build a boat before the flood. Abraham, who left his home and everything he had ever know to journey to the unknown land of Canaan. There is Abraham’s wife, Sarah, who in spite of her old age was able to bear a son. Then there is Moses, whom God called from a burning bush to lead God’s people out of bondage. And what about Paul, who was knocked of his horse and became know as one of the greatest leaders of Christianity. I could go on listing examples of individuals called directly by God, but I told Mary I would only speak for 10 minutes.
“It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves, you very much, but also has but his hand on you for something special.” I think very few people today receive guidance as clear as Paul did. Let me say that again. I think that very few people today receive guidance as clear as Paul did. God is not out there trying to trick us. He is not talking softer or in riddles, we’re not supposed to guess what God wants. Guidance isn’t meant to be confusing, but I think for many of us it isn’t as clear as we would want. I don’t know about you, but if I’m going to be told to give up my well ordered, safe life and follow a path filled with mysteries and no guarantees, I want the bright lights, knock-me-off-my-horse kind of message.
So if the transmitter is functioning just the same, then our receivers are not up to code. If God is constant then we need to look toward ourselves. Amid today’s noise and busyness, the guidance of God can so easily be ignored or misunderstood. Isn’t that convenient? I’m too busy; I don’t think I heard that right. My personal favorite is the “faith crisis”. How many times do we hear message from God that makes us uncomfortable so instead of being bold and moving forward, we have a “faith crisis” because our fear causes us to doubt our abilities?
I like Moses. I can really relate to him and his struggle to say “Yes” to God. After God calls to him from the burning bush and informs Moses of his mission, the first thing Moses says is “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” Did you hear what Moses said? “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” When Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, tells him to take the sheep out to pasture, Jethro doesn’t go with Moses. Moses takes his staff and his insulated lunch bag and off he goes. Jethro doesn’t follow along and give Moses instructions on which path to take, or how to care for the sheep or how to keep the wolves away. Moses goes alone. So, when God tells Moses to go to Egypt and free His people what would Moses think? We know what Moses thinks and it is not much different from what you and I would think…..Moses says, “Who am I?” I have to do this alone?! I think that is what is so frightening; we think we must make the journey alone.
The good news is that we don’t have to do it alone. Even if we would try to do it alone, we will fail. The purpose of our journey is to glorify God and if we proceed without Him we will not succeed. I pass the Salvation Army on my way to work and on their reader board a while ago it said “Commit your way to the Lord and whatever you do your plan will succeed.”
Moses can’t even speak well. There are some theologians that profess that he may have stuttered or had some other kind of speech impediment. Why would God send someone with obviously no skill in speaking to stand in front of Pharaoh and ask for something so important?
Think about this: If God were to send someone who could speak eloquently, with skill in a particular area there is a potential for a battle of wills, but if God sends someone with no skill, no preconceived notions, then dependence on God is 100%
“God has put his hand on you for something special.” We know that God has chosen us, all of us, for full-time Christian service. Full-time Christian service does not mean being a pastor or a priest. D. Elton Trueblood, a 20th century Quaker Theologian noted that “We should see the ordination to the priesthood as a sacrament; but we should likewise see ordination to any worth-while human task as a sacrament.” “Full-time Christian Service” can not be confined to clergy-related vocations. Farmers and plumbers and teachers can be equally “called” and equally “full-time” and equally “Christian” and they can equally render service. The crucial decision is not when we decide to be a pastor rather than a biologist, but when we decide to allow our entire life to be a channel of divine love.
St. Teresa of Avila is one of the great Christian Mystics. She lived in Spain during the 16th Century and is recognized as one of only two women who have received doctorates in the Catholic Church. Upon the command of her superiors, Teresa wrote several books to describe her incredible experiences with God. Like us, Teresa had difficulty discerning if what she heard was from God or from herself and she developed three “signs” that confirmed to her whether the words she heard were from God.
The first and truest sign is the power and authority they bear. When Teresa’s soul would be confused or troubled and she would seek God’s guidance; once he spoke to her she would be so comforted by what she heard it would be impossible for to have her soul believe anything else. The second sign is the great quiet that remained in her soul. The overwhelming peace and devotion she felt. And the third sign is that the words she heard would remain in her memory for a very long time, some were never forgotten.
“God has put his hand on you for something special.” You’ve been called to follow a path and you must boldly take that first step.
I am reminded of the movie “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.” Indiana’s father has spent his entire life researching the Holy Grail, the cup that Christ supposedly used at the Last Supper. And he has written everything down in a notebook. Indiana Jones receives his father’s notebook in the mail and that leads him on a search for his father and ultimately, the Holy Grail. The legend is that whoever drinks from the Holy Grail will have eternal life. As Indy comes to the end of his quest he discovers the Holy Grail is on the opposite side of a great abyss. There is no bridge, no ropes or vegetation with which Indy could cross over to the cave. It is even too far for his whip to reach. His father lay dying behind him, shot by the bad guys, who also want the Holy Grail and, in order to save his father, to get the cup that gives eternal life, he must cross over to the cave. He consults his father’s book and the instructions say, “Only in a leap from the lion’s head will he prove his worth.” Indy looks up and a lion’s head is carved in the stone wall above his head and he looks across the abyss and in dismay says, “Nobody can jump this.” Indy hears his father’s cry of pain from behind him and he looks forward and he feels this sense of urgency. And then he understands, “It’s a leap of faith” he says. He closes his eyes, takes a deep breath and with apparently nothing but air between him and the other side Indy boldly takes the step. He didn’t put his foot forward and sort of feel around, test the waters; he took a step….a full shift of body weight from one foot, standing securely on the precipice, to the other extended over seemingly nothing but air. And when he shakily extends his foot out into thin air he begins to pitch forward and he begins to fall. Suddenly his foot lands on something hard and he realizes he is standing on a bridge made of solid rock. This is the part I like. The bridge is lower than the precipice on which he was standing so we watch Indy begin to fall. There is a point of no return that Indy must pass before his foot lands on the bridge. He had to be fully committed to the step before he finds solidity.
“It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves you very much, but also has put his hand on you for something special.” So even as we know that God will give us the guidance and the strength we need for the journey, that first step, the one out into thin air, may be boldly taken without assurances.
It may be that we have to shift our weight and start to fall before we can see the Path that God has placed before us.