Think
Again
Sermon preached by the Reverend Patricia Farris
July 10, 2005
Scripture:
Psalm 100 and Matthew 6:25-33
Over the
next several weeks, Larry, Brad and I will be delivering sermons based
on questions and topics that some of you have suggested. We have very
much appreciated receiving all your input. Your submissions cover
the waterfront--theological and pastoral, serious and humorous, political
and practical. You’ve given us more than we can cover in these
remaining summer Sundays. As a result, some of your questions will
be woven into sermons throughout the coming year. We want to say a
big “thank you” today to everyone who has submitted input
to us and encourage you to keep it up! The best sermons always bring
the Word of God to bear on the things closest to our hearts. The more
you share with us, the more faithful to our task we can be. So keep
those questions and concerns coming!
Today’s theme was
born in a conversation with a mother at a Coffee Hour. As we were
chatting, she said: “I can’t stand it when people complain
about all they have to do—laundry, dishes, picking up the kids,
running here and there. Can’t they realize that in fact all
these things reveal just how very fortunate they are? If they’re
doing laundry, that means they have clothes to wear. If they are washing
dishes, that means they have food to eat. If they’re picking
up their kids—they’re blessed with healthy, active kids.
Instead of complaining, they should be giving thanks! Why don’t
you preach a sermon on that?”
She’d put her finger
on a couple of Jesus’ most basic teachings, ones which we are
often yet to learn. The most fundamental, of course, is gratitude,
living from the fundamental stance that everything we have is a gift
from God. From the creation to the incarnation, God lavishes love
upon us, in this beautiful creation, in the love of family and friends
and community, in the grace of Jesus Christ that gives us life and
sets us free. All of it is a gift, to be cherished and treasured and
nurtured. We are stewards of the many blessings God has bestowed upon
us.
But we tend to
turn it all around and get it all mixed up. First, we move God out
of the center of the universe and put ourselves there. Then we elevate
our own needs and feelings and start to see everything in terms of
what we feel entitled to. How many of our prayers begin not with “thank
you, God,” but with a long list of what we want God to do? Whether
for ourselves or for others, so many of our prayers begin with “please”
and “I.” No wonder the Gospels teach us that we will be
transformed through the renewing of our minds! We must stop and think
again.
(continued...)
"Think
Again " Sermon by Rev. Patricia Farris, July 10,
2005
We need to get a new mind, a new outlook and a new way of seeing everything.
This is the true meaning of repentance, which means to turn around.
I’m here to tell you that this is harder than it sounds. I had
to face it in myself as I was trying to get this sermon together. Because
a bunch of you wanted some humor in these sermons, I’m going to
tell a couple stories on myself to help us all laugh at ourselves a
bit. I was in my office trying to get the Order of Worship put together
for Rachel, choosing the hymns and the prayers and so forth. But because
it’s summer and we have about a million kids here each day in
Summer Adventures! and Destination Science, it’s rarely quiet
and peaceful. Just when I most needing to focus, a bunch of kids came
out into the courtyard to play a game that was loud and boisterous.
No way could I tune out their excited little voices. My first thought?
“Don’t these people know I’m trying to plan a worship
service up here?” Then I remembered the very theme I was trying
to address and just had to laugh at myself. And you know what? As soon
as I let go of my selfish snit, everything seemed to fall in place.
“Thank you, God, for these precious kids, for their joy in living.
And for this church, that gives them a place to grow and play and learn.”
But
my great revelation didn’t last too long! A couple days later,
I was holed up trying to write the sermon. But my peace and quiet was
again disrupted, this time by the plumber who had to come and do some
work at the parsonage. Now the plumber who does the work here at the
church is great. He’s one of the quickest and most tidy plumbers
I’ve ever met and he’s very active in his church. But, plumbers
are plumbers. He was banging and going in and out and all I could think
about was how long it was going to take and if I’d ever have a
chance to get done. Then it hit me again—how very fortunate I
am. Thank you, God, for a job I love. Thank you for a beautiful home,
with indoor plumbing and hot and cold running water. Thank you for the
resources to pay a plumber and for his knowledge and skill. Thank you
for all of it!
This same transformation of turning our minds around and seeing things
through the eyes of faith is central; it seems to me, to the power of
our Prayer Quilt Ministry. The whole process of approaching someone
about a prayer quilt shifts the focus from suffering and fear to prayer.
It changes the dynamic of feeling alone and afraid, to being surrounded
in a very tangible way by the loving community of God’s church.
For some, the healing that comes is physical. But surely for all who
receive a quilt, healing is spiritual. Over and over again, we have
heard the testimonies of those whose journey through illness and pain
has been transformed by the beauty and love and comfort of a prayer
quilt, saying to us: the fact that you reached out to me in love and
prayer has made all the difference in the world. The prayers themselves
shift from “I-centered” prayers to prayers thanking God
for the blessings of compassion and support and hope.
On
Thursday, my sermon preparation was again interrupted. This time it
wasn’t by distractions in my immediate environment, but by the
horrible and heart-breaking news of the terrorist bombings in London
that killed and injured so many and again struck our hearts with fear.
How do we take today’s lesson of turning our minds around and
seeing things through the eyes of our faith and apply it to a situation
such as this?
(continued...)
"Think
Again " Sermon by Rev. Patricia Farris, July 10,
2005
How do we turn our hearts from fear, from revenge, from a deep instinct
to withdraw into a self-imposed cocoon of safety? How do we not perpetuate
the cycle of violence and death? How does our faith in God shape our
response? How do we now live? We can take our cue from the religious
leaders of Britain who immediately joined together in a unified stand:
Protestant, Catholic, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh. They bring a
powerful witness to us this morning about what it means to respond
as a person of faith. First, we pray for victims and their families.
Across London, churches and other houses of worship have been open
for shelter, aid and prayer. And, as they said, “We salute the
courage, compassion and selfless labours of the emergency services,
whose humanity shines out amidst such a dark, pitiless and unforgiving
cruelty.”
But moreover,
they said, we refuse “to concede to terrorists the victory of
sowing fear and hatred between communities.” As the Archbishop
of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, proclaimed: “We do not have to
be anxious. We need to know what are the dangers and risks. But the
will is very deep and the desire to trust each other is also very
deep. …We in the faith communities will have to continue to
stand and work together for the well-being of our nation and for our
shared understanding of the life that God call us to. I hope that
we shall all keep that vision alive at this deeply sad and testing
time….”
Brothers
and sisters, we must stand together to keep that vision alive through
these sad and testing times in which we live. The life God calls us
all into is a life of gratitude, not resentment. A life of compassion,
not mistrust. A life of courage, not cynicism. A life of commitment,
not selfishness. A life of community, not isolation. A life of faithfulness,
not fear.
On this
beautiful morning, as we welcome a new baby brother into the household
of God, we renew in our hearts the commitments of our baptismal vows.
In so doing, let us determine anew to live as stewards of God’s
blessings, turning our minds to what is good and true and lasting
and just, trusting God who is always faithful to renew in us the fortitude
and the determination to keep that vision alive.
AMEN.
Notes:
07/07/05 Yorkshire Post Today.
07/07/05 Leeds Today Evening Post.
© Patricia E. Farris, 2005. Permission is given for brief quotation
with attribution. All other rights reserved.
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