Little help...
I am one who needs to have conversation with people in regards to Scripture almost everyday. This is especially true for the times in which I am preaching. The conversations help me understand where people are and gives me some place to begin working so that I am somewhat close to where people are with the text. It is my way of being incarnational with preaching preparation.
The past several weeks conversations with people have been fruitful and ones for which I greatly appreciate and hope they have augmented the messages. However, this week as been busier than normal as we are a minister down and school has begun meaning the church is moving into full swing with it's ministries.
So by way of seeking conversation consider this an invitation not unlike ones from the past.
Here is the Scripture (Luke 14: 25-33).
What do you get from this?
What is God saying to you through this?
What shimmers at you in this text?
Where do you agree/disagree?
A little help would be much appreciated.
The past several weeks conversations with people have been fruitful and ones for which I greatly appreciate and hope they have augmented the messages. However, this week as been busier than normal as we are a minister down and school has begun meaning the church is moving into full swing with it's ministries.
So by way of seeking conversation consider this an invitation not unlike ones from the past.
Here is the Scripture (Luke 14: 25-33).
What do you get from this?
What is God saying to you through this?
What shimmers at you in this text?
Where do you agree/disagree?
A little help would be much appreciated.
Maturing or just a new job title?
A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to preach at Arlington Heights UMC. It was the first time I have preached at AHUMC on a Sunday morning in quite some time (I think this was the first time this year). Granted I preach at our Friday night worship most weeks and I also preach very often at Grace UMC, but Sunday morning at AHUMC is much less often.
While I am unclear on the specific date, I know that the last time I preached a Sunday morning sermon at AHUMC was when I was the "youth minister". In February I stepped into a different role as an "associate minister" after the appointment of Rev. Raul Gutierrez.
In the weeks to follow the sermon I was told by more than a few people something that has me thinking. While all different, they each said something to this accord:
"I want you to hear this as a compliment as it is intended to be. Your last sermon on grapes I saw a very real mature voice come out than other sermons. I saw you had your edge but it was an edge that came appropriate for adults and not the sort of 'shock' that comes with teaching youth. Great job."
This is indeed a compliment, but it got me thinking about the fact that perhaps there is something to this to consider.
I am not going to deny that I am maturing, I think we all are all the time, but I do think that I would have preached the same sermon years ago. In fact, this sermon I thought I was being rather 'shocking' (telling people to stop random acts of kindness, scolding church when it is like the T.V show "Cheers", saying we all might be wild grapes that God does not intend to grow, etc.). Yet, many people have shared that it was "mature".
I guess I wonder if it is really me that is maturing or if people are just hearing me differently now that I am no longer the "youth minister"?
Grace UMC has never commented these sort of compliments and I have been preaching there for over a year. Grace UMC also does not know me as the former "youth guy" but only as their "minister". I wonder if people of AHUMC are hearing me different, in part because, I have a different role/job title/function in the life of the community?
And if so, then I wonder what sort of things we are not hearing or seeing because they come from the mouth of one for whom we deem it 'inappropriate' to say or point out such things?
Perhaps that is why Jesus thought that adults should look to children as a good model for living in the Kingdom of God but we just cannot see it. I mean what do kids know about the Kingdom of God? They are just kids. And yet when those kids grow up they are no longer 'kids' and we are more likely to listen to them - even if they never really change what they are saying.
Or perhaps this is why Jesus says that a prophet will not be accepted in their hometown because we have a hard time disassociating the person from their past role/function. I mean what person would listen to Jesus talk about loving one another when they knew Jesus when he was "a punk teenager"?
Can only those who break from the past can see the present?
While I am unclear on the specific date, I know that the last time I preached a Sunday morning sermon at AHUMC was when I was the "youth minister". In February I stepped into a different role as an "associate minister" after the appointment of Rev. Raul Gutierrez.
In the weeks to follow the sermon I was told by more than a few people something that has me thinking. While all different, they each said something to this accord:
"I want you to hear this as a compliment as it is intended to be. Your last sermon on grapes I saw a very real mature voice come out than other sermons. I saw you had your edge but it was an edge that came appropriate for adults and not the sort of 'shock' that comes with teaching youth. Great job."
This is indeed a compliment, but it got me thinking about the fact that perhaps there is something to this to consider.
I am not going to deny that I am maturing, I think we all are all the time, but I do think that I would have preached the same sermon years ago. In fact, this sermon I thought I was being rather 'shocking' (telling people to stop random acts of kindness, scolding church when it is like the T.V show "Cheers", saying we all might be wild grapes that God does not intend to grow, etc.). Yet, many people have shared that it was "mature".
I guess I wonder if it is really me that is maturing or if people are just hearing me differently now that I am no longer the "youth minister"?
Grace UMC has never commented these sort of compliments and I have been preaching there for over a year. Grace UMC also does not know me as the former "youth guy" but only as their "minister". I wonder if people of AHUMC are hearing me different, in part because, I have a different role/job title/function in the life of the community?
And if so, then I wonder what sort of things we are not hearing or seeing because they come from the mouth of one for whom we deem it 'inappropriate' to say or point out such things?
Perhaps that is why Jesus thought that adults should look to children as a good model for living in the Kingdom of God but we just cannot see it. I mean what do kids know about the Kingdom of God? They are just kids. And yet when those kids grow up they are no longer 'kids' and we are more likely to listen to them - even if they never really change what they are saying.
Or perhaps this is why Jesus says that a prophet will not be accepted in their hometown because we have a hard time disassociating the person from their past role/function. I mean what person would listen to Jesus talk about loving one another when they knew Jesus when he was "a punk teenager"?
Can only those who break from the past can see the present?
The Holy Spirit - the Ultimate Wedding Crasher
Recently I officiated at a wedding for a wonderful couple. Weddings give me a very insecure feeling because there are a lot of unspoken expectations at a wedding. Everything has to be just right. One of the things that has to be just right, as I perceive it, is what the minister says. You do not want to be "preachy" yet you want to share Gospel - oh and you only have a few minutes. It is nerve racking.
Here something like what I said at this last wedding.
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On behalf of everyone hear, I want to thank you for allowing us to be with you tonight. It is a true honor, joy and privilege. Not just because you are exchanging vows. Not just because you are giving rings. Not just because there will be great family pictures. Not just because we are celebrating the two of you and the union of two wonderful families. Not just because we recognize God in the middle of all of this. Not just because there will be cake afterwards. It is a honor, joy and privilege to be here because ALL of that is happening.
Sometimes we say this is a special moment. Some people say it is once in a lifetime. Some might venture to say it is beautiful or romantic. For us Christians we say this moment is holy. Hold on to this moment because there seems to be fewer and fewer moments like this.
The text we just read a moment of was from Song of Solomon or Song of Songs. If you read the entire book you get the very strong feeling that there is a sense of urgency and anticipation between the beloved and the beloved-ed. They are anticipating a future yet to be. They are excited for the winter to be over and they are anticipating being united. They are planning and hoping and dreaming and imagining what the future will hold for them once they "get started" on their life together.
I could not help but think as I read this text, in all their anticipation and urgency for the future, how many holy moments did they miss out on? How many times did they experience life and see it as commonplace, ordinary or, heaven forbid, even boring? How many holy moments did they miss out on?
It is my prayer that you do not miss out on your chances for holy moments. To be honest with you that is one of the joys of marriage. There is someone in your life who can help point out the holy moments. They can look at flowers and say, those are not just flowers in the garden but these flowers will adorn your jacket on our wedding day. You have a great gift in one another, you have another set of eyes for the holy.
It is our prayer that you do not miss out on holy moments. Do not miss out on this moment.
Amen.
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I share this because I did not prepare to talk about this at all. I had in my mind another sermon entirely and was prepared to share those words. I practiced them in the car ride to the church. I even wrote up notes. Not a word of it made it to the "preaching moment". This was something which was right in the moment. I honestly felt there was something moving in the room that night. Call it what you will (I use the label of Holy Spirit), but I cannot explain why I can prepare for one thing then in the moment come out with something else.
It was a great wedding. It really was a joy and an honor.
And to be honest with you, I have tried to see more holy moments these past two days. And at the very least not think of anything as commonplace or, heaven forbid, boring.
Be the change by Jason Valendy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.