Readings:
Isaiah 1:1,10-20, Luke 12: 32-40
Let us pray: May the words of my mouth and the meditations
of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God, our rock and our
sustainer. Amen.
I want to begin
with a story from Mitch Albom, in his book ‘Have a Little Faith[1]’
where he meets with a Rabbi who has asked him to do his eulogy when he dies
–this is a quote from one of Rabbi Albert Lewis’ sermon
“A man seeks
employment on a farm. He hands his
letter of recommendation to his new employer.
It reads simply, ‘He sleeps in a storm.’
The owner is
desperate for help, so he hires the man.
Several weeks pass, and suddenly, in the middle of the night, a powerful
storm rips through the valley.
Awakened by the
swirling rain and howling wind, the owner leaps out of bed. He calls for his new hired hand, but the man
is sleeping soundly.
So he dashes off
to the barn. He sees, to his amazement,
that the animals are secure with plenty of feed.
He runs out to the
field. He sees the bales of wheat have
been bound and are wrapped in tarpaulins.
He races to the
silo. The doors are latched, and the
grain is dry.
And then he
understands. ‘He sleeps in a storm’.
My friends, says
the Rabbi, if we tend to the things that are important in life, if we are right
with those we love and behave in line with our faith, our lives will not be
cursed with the aching throb of unfulfilled business. Our words will always be sincere, our
embraces will be tight. We will never
wallow in the agony of ‘I could have, I should have…’
We can sleep in a
storm.
And when it is
time our goodbyes will be complete.”
What is it that
God requires of us in our living? How are we to be ready for the unexpected
coming?
These are the
questions for continually asking if we are genuine about following the way of
Jesus. These were questions that formed
part of the Parish Council retreat last Saturday as we explored our life in
this church and this community. Our
readiness as the people of God!
Being
prepared. Watchful waiting – just what
does this mean for us?
First of all, in
the reading, Jesus assures us of the presence of God in our lives and the
world. The kingdom of God is no future
possibility – is now and it is certain.
It is the promise that allows us to live life on the edge – to take
risks and to be bold in our living. It
is also the promise that holds us when things go wrong and where we can’t see
round the looming corner. God is our treasure, our very heart and in God we
trust.
Then Jesus
encourages us to be ready and dressed for action for we do not know the when or
the where of the coming of the one who is the master? But not the master in the
sense they know it – but the one who come and turns lives upside down, who
serves them and blesses them.
It would be
simplistic to think that we are capable of 24/7 vigilance, looking always to
what is to come and not be involved and engaged in what is. We would wear ourselves out, sleepless,
always on the alert for the door. Doing
nothing so that we can always be ready to do something. That doesn’t feel right either. People can get fixated about the coming of
the kingdom – Jesus preaches that it is already here and we are to be
involved. And he gives heaps of
teachings about how that is to look throughout the Gospels – all to show us how
to be rich towards God - now.
Being dressed and
ready for action is, for me, about being alert to the presence of God in every
single thing that we do and be, part of our dna as Christians. The whole of life is an abundant gift from a
generous God – and our then giving that gift to others is to be done with
generous abandon and in trust.
So talking about
success and 24/7 fixation and failure as sleeping on the job I don’t find
particularly helpful here. Rather we can
examine the ways in which we can be alert to the voice of God, the teachings of
Jesus, the guidance of the Spirit in our lives so that we see things we might
not have seen before, heard things differently, been equipped for the
unexpected, or as David Schlafer said ‘position ourselves to be surprised.’
And what is it
that equips us to be alert in this way?
First of all –
worship – not just as a set of rituals that need doing each week, as the text
from Isaiah describes, but as an awed and candid engagement with God that is
life-giving, community transforming and world altering. Reminding ourselves of the promise of God, of
the power of the love to transform us and the world, of the need to engage and
praise and be delighted at God’s abundant generosity. Do we allow worship to speak into our
alertness and readiness for whatever might come our way?
Then there is the
community that we are part of – a community to rest in, one that restores and
builds up and encourage and cares?
Learning that sense of belonging, of welcome in all our diversity and
difference is one of the most powerful foundations from which we can venture
forth into the unknown and deal with the unexpected. Sharing our concerns, knowing that even in
our distress we are loved is incredibly precious and empowering. And it is in this community that we can then
tackle when we are in sleep mode or doing things that are abhorrent to God – as
did Isaiah - when we are getting it wrong, we are to argue it out, discern what
is good and what is evil and walk that path.
And we are to
actively and creatively grow in faith and understanding – our personal
journeys, the disciplines of prayer and engagement with scripture and the doing
of God’s work. For it is there that we
so often meet the Christ, in the silence and listening of prayer, in studying
the words and acts of Jesus, in the reflections of those who have gifts of interpretation
and creative understanding, and finally in the moments of absolute gifting that
is being the work of God in the world.
So as we gather
around the table today, sharing the bread and wine as one people, may we trust
in God’s promise of the riches of the kingdom and may we draw Christ deeply
into our hearts so that in our going from here we might be equipped and alert
for travelling in the way of Jesus, whatever comes our way. Amen
Margaret Garland
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