Calamity!

I give thanks to God for the life and the freedom that we enjoy in this place, may we never take it for granted.

This is Memorial Day weekend.  Not to be confused with Veterans Day.  Veterans Day honors all who served in the armed forces, who offered their lives, their service to their country.  Memorial Day is a day to honor those whose lives were lost in service to our country.

John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

Whenever I hear or read of the actions of those who have received the Congressional Medal of Honor, I hear things that show the recipient had more regard for the safety and well-being for others than for themselves even to the point of death.  That is extraordinary.  We all have a natural instinct to survive. When that is set aside for love of another, it is something to be honored.

But that is how we find life. We put our trust in one who gave his life for everybody and we live as he lived.

(The story of my neighbor Ann and the Brayls)

The unavoidable fact of life is death. Each one of us, in our time, will face it. It’s all around us. Life moves all too quickly and one day you realize that these years on this planet are all too short.  It is all too easy to fall into the trap of holding on to life and holding on to temporary things.  Things of this world cannot bring happiness and life.  Temporary things can only disappoint.

In This passage of the story of Noah everything on the earth has died except Noah, his family and all the creatures on the Ark. There is death all around this is a bleak part of the story.

Again we can too quickly read past passages of scripture like this and not even notice what is happening.  Scripture says everything that was on the earth died.  Perhaps that’s too big to wrap our minds around.  What if it said everyone in the city died?  Or “everyone you know except those on your boat has died?” Death seems to have victory at this point. To be in that situation to experience that kind of loss must have been devastating.

 But this is God’s story.  This is a story about how God saves.  God is in control.

The Young Disciples and I talked about lions for a little bit. Lions are just lions.  Lions are creatures on this planet that have their place.  They are impressive cats. They are dangerous and beautiful. No special meaning or mention was given to lions being on the ark. The lions that were on the ark were just lions. But I want to talk about the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus.  He is the one who is with us. He is the Author of Life who is with us as we find ourselves surrounded by death.

Judah was one of the sons of Isaac.  When Isaac was near death he had his sons gather around him and he blessed them each.  

To his son Judah he said:

 “Judah, your brothers will praise you;
    your hand will be on the neck of your enemies;
    your father’s sons will bow down to you.
⁹ You are a lion’s cub, Judah;
    you return from the prey, my son.
Like a lion he crouches and lies down,
    like a lioness—who dares to rouse him?
¹⁰ The scepter will not depart from Judah,
    nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until he to whom it belongs shall come
    and the obedience of the nations shall be his.
¹¹ He will tether his donkey to a vine,
    his colt to the choicest branch;
he will wash his garments in wine,
    his robes in the blood of grapes.
¹² His eyes will be darker than wine,
    his teeth whiter than milk.

We believe this to be prophesying about Jesus.

In Matthew chapter 1. 14 generations from Abraham to David. 4^th in that linage is Judah.

Then 14 generations to the time of the exile, then 14 generations from the exile to the Messiah, Jesus.

Many years after Jesus death the apostle John was in exile on the island of Patmos and had a vision which is recorded as the book of Revelation in our Bible.  Part of that vision was of what was happening in the heavenly realm.

At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. ³ And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne. ⁴ Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. ⁵ From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits^[a] of God. ⁶ Also in front of the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal.

In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back.⁷ The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. ⁸ Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying:

“‘Holy, holy, holy

is the Lord God Almighty,’

who was, and is, and is to come.”

⁹ Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, ¹⁰ the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside.  Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

We could spend years dissecting the book of Revelation but what I want to point out this morning is that Jesus, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah is able to do what no one on earth or in heaven can do.  He is the one who has been slain and he is the one who has triumphed over death.  He is the highest authority.  He is our King.

It is in Jesus Christ that we find life.  Jesus is our ark in the midst of the flood.  Jesus promises abundant life.

Jesus died for our sin.  In our baptism we share in Christ’s death so that we can share in his life.

Perhaps the flood is the baptism of the earth. What was steeped in death is now made new. A new order of things is established so that we can trust in God. Trusting in God means letting God save you from the temporary.

The only way to escape the things that hold you back is to die to them. We have to be spiritually re-born in Christ and trust in him.

So how is it with you today?  Do you know that you are part of a bigger story?  The temporary things of this life are not for us to cling to but to used to bless and transform this world, to be used to point to God.

So I invite you to fully participate in the life that God gave you.  Celebrate, love each other but don’t hold too tightly to the things of this world.  Cling only to Jesus Christ.  Let the flow through your hands as blessings to others. 

Flood's Comin'!

Flood’s comin'! At least that is what my phone tells me frequently.  I get alerts from the National Weather Service when severe weather is coming and this includes flood warnings.  It seems like there hasn’t been a week this spring that there hasn’t been a river flood warning that has popped up.

Noah didn’t have a smart phone. He had a relationship with God. Noah got an alert that the flood was comin’! We’ve talked about how God chose Noah and we’ve talked about the difficult task that was before Noah and Naamah their family. We’ve talked about God’s great love and desire to save and we have talked about how God wants to save even the things that we may think are undesirable (like dirty pigsJ)

"God shut them in."

Now we are within a week of the flood that would come into Noah’s life. The flood is comin’!

The floods always come.

On the 15^th just this past Thursday, there was a report of a man with a gun walking around Greenville, Michigan. It was early in the morning so they told the students not to come to school.  My kids were students at Greenville public schools once upon a time.  This is the nightmare of every parent sending their children off to school.  They are out of our protective care and schools have been a target in recent history of very unstable people.

On the same day, this past Thursday President Obama dedicated the 9/11 museum in NYC. We took some of the youth there this past summer.  We saw the museum. We look through the glass at the unfinished project but we couldn’t go in.  Most of the youth that were on the trip had no direct memory of the events of that day in 2001. They were all just slightly too young. Where were you on that day?  How did you react?

(My experience of 9/11)

Flood’s comin’’! Floods always come.  You see the flood isn’t always a bunch of water. Sometimes it the Santa Anna winds making a hellish wild fire that is threating to consume your world in Southern California.  Sometimes it’s evil people like members of Boko Haram killing thousands and kidnapping hundreds of school girls in Nigeria.

Flood’s comin’!  Or perhaps you are in the midst of surviving your own flood.  Perhaps you are being overwhelmed by the circumstances in your life.

When the flood was coming God gave Noah instructions to save him. He told him how to prepare. And then God shut him in. Sometimes we need to be shut in and protected until the flood passes.

(A story of depression)

Sometimes God shuts us in.  We shut ourselves in to hide or to gain our strength so that we can flourish. If we don’t shut ourselves in in a healthy way we won’t flourish.

If we go, go, go we can run out of energy.  Jesus doesn’t want us to spend ourselves he wants us to endure.  He calls us to live and to serve and to sacrifice but he also says that while we may be hated by all men for his name’s sake, those who endure will be saved (Matthew 10:22 paraphrase).  Sometimes the storms of life are too much.  I am reminded of the time when Jesus was on the Sea of Galilee and a storm arose.  His disciples were afraid for their lives but Jesus wasn’t worried, in fact he was sleeping through it.  But when they woke him the said to the sea, “peace, be still.” And there was a great calm.

The disciples were distressed and Jesus cared for them.

The question is: is this the exclusive ministry of Jesus and the church? To be a place of calm and protection for the Disciples of Christ.

What does Jesus do? After he calms the storm he continues his ministry.  He heals people, one after another. And he directs his disciple to feed the multitude.

We are all at different places on our spiritual journey.  There is no one “right” place to be.  You may find yourself preparing for a coming flood, you may have experienced an overwhelming flood in your life and are waiting for any sign of dry ground or you may be ready to begin life again.

The thing is, when God shut Noah in he didn’t shut him out.  God didn’t direct Noah to build an ark so that he could live there forever; it was a temporary solution to a temporary problem. God told Noah to bring the pairs of animals on board and to bring food for them. This was not a situation that could last forever. God was saving Noah and his family from the flood and at the same time God was making provision for life after the flood.  The pairs of animals mean the continuance of life, all life.  The clean and the unclean. The good, the bad and the ugly. God wanted 7 pairs of clean animals as opposed to one pair of unclean which shows that God has a desire that life be holy and wholly devoted to God.

If you are currently resting in the protection of God; if you are shut in so that you can find your strength I ask that you allow your fellow passengers for whom the storm has passed, who are ready for the continuance of life, to go out and tell people about the love and protection that God offers.  I am asking that you make room in this place, in the life of this church for people who need God in their lives.

Earlier I read from the Gospel the parable of the seeds.

The seed is a great analogy of this.  We are like the seed.  We are not put away so to be preserved just as we are. We are planted so that we can grow and produce fruit.

Noah was shut in the Ark.

Jesus was shut in the tomb.

We are brought into Jesus love and care so that we can be transformed into something better than we have ever been before.

So how is it with you today? Can you make room on the boat for someone who may also need God’s love and protection?

Flood’s comin’! Floods always come. God is calling you to a life of faith and of abundance life despite the floods that inevitably come. Would you pray with me? 

Noah 2

These are tough instructions.  God told Mary and Joseph to take their new baby hundreds of miles to live in Egypt.  God told Noah to build an ark and bring animals, food and his family into it. Have you ever been asked to do something that seemed too difficult? Maybe you are going through an impossible task right now.  Take a moment and just breathe. God is with you. You are surrounded by people that can love you through it.

Happy Mother’s Day.

I don’t know how anyone survives parenthood. It is a monumental task that is tackled one tragedy at a time.  Moms, you provide the conditions in which your children grow and then send them into the world to share their gifts and talents and perhaps start their own families.  You love unconditionally and sacrifice often.  You continually have your heart broken and wish you could provide more and better.

There is a wide range of experience among mothers here. 

To those who gave birth this year to your first child-we celebrate with you.

To those who lost a child-we mourn with you.

To those who are in the trenches with little ones every day and war the badge of food stains-we appreciate you.

To those who experienced loss through miscarriage- we mourn with you.

For those who walk the path of infertility-we walk with you.

To those who are foster moms, mentor moms, and spiritual moms-we need you.

To those who have warm and close relationships with your children-we celebrate you.

To those who have disappointment, heart ache, and distance with your children-we sit with you.

To those who have lost their mothers-we grieve with you.

To those who lived through driving tests, medical tests, and overall testing of motherhood-we are better for having you in our midst.

To those who are single and long to be married and mothering your own children- we mourn that life has not turned out the way you longed for it to be.

To those who step-parent –we walk with you on these complex paths.

To those who envisioned lavishing love on grandchildren-yet that dream is not to be, we grieve with you.

To those who will have emptier nests in the upcoming year-we grieve and rejoice with you.

To those who place children for adoption-we commend you for your selflessness and remember how you hold that child in your heart.

And to those who are pregnant with new life- we anticipate with you.

Noah came into the house one day and his sons Shem, ham and Japheth were off doing what boys do and he said to his wife, “I think I need to build a boat.”

Naamah, his wife and mother of his three sons probably had a reaction.

But then Noah, at some point had to describe the size of boat that he was intending to build. One that was 75’ wide, 450’ long and 45’ high.

This building just west of Grand Rapids, Michigan on highway 96,
 resembles what I imaging the size and shape of the Ark to have been. 

I imagine Naamah, which means “beautiful one,” again, had a reaction.

“So you, meaning we, meaning I am going to build a huge box, a barn, covered in pitch inside and out with three levels and we are going to live in it because a flood is coming?”

Don’t forget the animals that will be living with us, besides Shem, Ham and Japheth.

It doesn’t say how long Noah spent building the Ark.  But it must have taken a good long time and required quite a lot of resources.  And we never hear a word about his wife and sons.  They must have helped.  They must have sacrificed. 

The scripture says that “The earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.” God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before me, for he earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”

We often focus on the destruction, the sin of humanity and the anger of God with this story. But is that really the point?

If God’s aim was to eliminate corruption and violence on the earth did God succeed? Have there been any instances of violence or corruption?  Of course on a daily basis, but does that mean God failed or does it mean that God had a different purpose in this story?

“Two of every sort shall come to you, to keep them alive. Take with you of all food that is eaten, and gather it to you; and it will be for food for you and for them.”

It’s not a story about what God is going to destroy, but more about how God saves.

“Thus Noah did. According to all that God commanded him, so he did.”

There is going to be a flood.  Listen to me and I will save you.

King Herod intended to massacre the children that were two years of age and younger so God sent Mary and Joseph on a difficult journey to Egypt.

The brokenness of humanity and the corruption of the earth swells all around us and threatens to overtake each one of our lives but God says listen to me and I will save you!  

During that time in Egypt Mary was being a mother to her son Jesus.  They were refugees in a foreign country because their very lives were under threat.

During the time on the Ark Naamah was being a mother to Shem, Ham and Japheth they were surviving a flood.

Both mothers were enduring under extraordinary conditions. They were providing the conditions for their respective children to grow and thrive despite their personal circumstances.

I’ve never heard a mom say that it was easy raising her children.  But it is definitely easier when you have help. Generations of moms have been leaning on each other in this church and I have seen you support and love the new moms that come into this church.

There is a monumental task that is before us.  God is calling us to do something grand.  God is calling us to do something difficult.  God is calling us to trust him that whatever in convenience may come our way that it is for a good reason. 

It’s not that God is bringing destruction but that God wants this place to be a place where people can find refuge and salvation from the corruption and the violence of the world. 

Let me talk to you about Vacation Bible School. You have told me that “family” is a top value of this congregation.  We value multigenerational experiences.  We see the person in the pew and the person down the street as part of God’s family and we want to both to know God’s love.  Vacation Bible School is more than entertaining children for 5 days.  In mid-June we are going to see the fruit of 1000 invitations to households in the surrounding neighborhood.  The team of people working on VBS this year has a vision to provide lunch each day for the children that come.  Not just a snack but a meal.  Then at the end of the week we want the families of all the participating children to come and have a cookout/potluck to celebrate.  It’s about sharing the love of God.  It’s about building community.  It will be a monumental task.  It will require many more than just the 5 or 6 people making the plans. We will need people making food, leading children, greeting visitors.  This is certainly more than a children’s program it is a community outreach.  WE want everyone who walks through our doors to feel so welcome and safe that they will not question whether this is the place for them. They will know it.

We value mothers; we value family; we value our role as stewards of all that God has trusted us with. We value our call to know Christ and to make him known. 

There are people that God is calling to find refuge here; they just don’t know where to go to find us. Perhaps we need a van or a bus to go and pick them up and bring them here. 

There are places in our building that are difficult to get to because of physical limitations, perhaps we can make adjustments so that all spaces in the church can be used by all people.  There are children nearby who need preschool. Perhaps we could provide one. There are people in our community who speak only Spanish; perhaps we could open our church so they could gather for a worship service in their language.

God is calling us to monumental things.  They may seem difficult, but God will bless our efforts.  

Noah 1

This is the first of a 9 part series on the story of the Biblical character Noah. 

Genesis 6:1-12

Matthew 2:1-12

 “But as for Noah, the Lord approved of him.”

A depiction of Noah found on the wall
of the youth room at St. Paul UMC. 

How did Noah find favor with God? Of all that was going on in the world that made God want to destroy humanity what was it about Noah that he was the one chosen?

The question really is: what do I have to do to find favor with God?

Sometimes we can set really high standards for ourselves. When I turned 30 I thought, “Jesus died at 33.  I better get going on this ministry thing.”  When I turned 40 I thought “Martin Luther King Jr. never made it to 40 and look at the impact his life had on this world, I better get going on this ministry thing.”

Not to compare myself with them but to understand that our time I limited and to make the most of it while we are here.

In my office, if you were to look above the door I have 3 pictures, 3 images. The one in the middle is an image of Jesus Christ with the word hope at the bottom of it. Jesus is at the center of everything for me. I have two more images of men that I admire and hope to emulate.  They also held Jesus at the center of their lives.

We should all be about the imitation of Christ.  We should all seek to love, heal, and reconcile and there is so many ways we can do that, so many interpretations of the Christian life based on our gifts and talents.  There are so many application based on our community and the era we live in.

Who in our time sets the tone for our behavior?  Too often it is people who have selfish motivations for power. Do we look to the President of the United States or other national leaders? Do we look to the General Secretary of the United Nations?  Do we look to people like Joel Osteen or Oprah Winfrey? Or maybe it’s folk like Katie Perry and Pharell that are the prophets of our day.

But as for Noah, the Lord approved of him. Why? If you look at the context of the passage it comes after Genesis chapter 5, which gives the Genealogy of Noah and his sons. Then in the beginning of Chapter six the passage I that I read we get the context of what was happening in the time of Noah.  And the context of what was before. V5 says “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” But before that there were heroes.  There were giants. V4 says “there were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came into the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.”

There were great people on the earth, but as for Noah, the Lord approved of him.  Why? Why in a world where there are mighty men, popular heroes and giants in a world of wickedness and evil intent in the hearts of people, would you pick the guy in the neighborhood? The guy down the street.  Why choose Noah, the regular guy who had a wife and 3 sons to be the one to carry the burden?

How does anyone find favor with God?  What does Jesus say?  “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.”

I am reminded of this passage this time of year as I see the smoke of burning tree branches from the pruned fruit trees. The only way to produce fruit is to stay connected.

Abraham was declared righteous not because he was such a great guy but because he was willing to do what God asked him to do. 

King David is a man after God’s own heart but he was a terrible sinner.  What made him useful was that he was willing to listen to God’s correction and follow God’s command. Remember when David was young, the faith that he had? He was there on the battle field to watch the battle with the Philistine army and the Giant Goliath was taunting the Army of Israel. He wanted to fight this seasoned warrior who stood over 9’ tall. Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

³⁴ But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, ³⁵ I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. ³⁶ Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. ³⁷ The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”

 It is that close relationship with God, which God can use.

God used Noah because Noah stayed connected.  It’s not the Heroes, it’s not the famous people and it’s not the giants that will be chosen but it will be those of you who abide in Jesus and lead by his Spirit. Chosen for what?

To bring order in the midst of chaos.

To bring a message of hope in a time of hopelessness.

To deliver good news in a time despair.

War, terrorism, global poverty, how can you remain faithful in these circumstances? What in your house hold can you do to bring the power of Christ to things that are out of your earthly control?  God has gifted you in a particular way to be his worker. God has called you to be part of his family this morning. God has Chosen you.

In the Gospel lesson today I read about the visit of the wise men to Jesus and Herod’s desire to find the threat to his earthly rule. Herod seemingly had all the power.  Yet he is a minor character in the story of history.  The Glory of God fills the earth.  Jesus is Lord over everything.  If little Herod had any idea who that baby really was he should have given up everything and traveled with the wise men to worship at the feet of the newly born Son of God. 

God is moving.  God is always up to something.  How is it with you today?  It can be an ugly and chaotic world out there. Are you; are we in a position to be useful to God? We are the called out ones.  We are the ones who God has imparted righteousness to.  No because we are the Heroes or the giants of our time but because we are the ones willing to listen to the call of God in our lives.

At this point in the story of Noah, he didn’t know that God had a task for him. But God already had him set apart.

How can you be open to God's working in your life in ways that you are not yet aware of?