Tending the Seed of Tension
So as I was sitting in my ass is on Friday night. I was eating Oreos. I was drinking Vernors ginger ale and I had one of those head massager thing. He's stuck on top of my head. How's that for a visual? What better way to prepare a message on tending the seed of tension then by eating Oreos drinking Vernors and massaging? the hair on my head those of you from hopes congregation know that we have been in a series during this time of Easter preparation called scattering seeds tending the soil of our souls. The title of this week's message and the scripture passage for it where pet were picked long before the words coronavirus covid-19, social distancing and flattening the curve became part of our everyday vocabulary.
Had the series progressed as planned. I likely would have been speaking about the tensions that we often see a when we try to share a Faith with those who might not believe. It has the world is now the tensions we feel are very very different. Everyday were inundated with data detailing Des positive diagnosis number of people being monitored. And how many days until we finally hit the peak. Every day, there's another cancellation another bit of bad news another disappointment. That's a lot of tension. That's a lot of Grease. Now, you know why I had the massager thingy on my head and why I was drinking Vernors because there's a good michigander. I know that Vernors is the cure-all. So in the midst of all of this tension, we come to this week's scripture reading out of the New Testament book of Luke chapter 12 in the bibles are been using this passage is titled. Jesus causes division. Okay, let's give it a read and then discuss. I'm reading from the New Living Translation.
Luke chapter 12 verses 49 through 56 and I wish it were already burning. I have a terrible baptism of suffering ahead of me and I am under a heavy burden until it is accomplished. Do you think I have come to bring peace to the Earth know? I have come to divide people against each other.
From now on families will be split apart 3 in favor of me and two against or two in favor and 3 against father will be divided against son and son against father mother against daughter and daughter against mother and mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. Then Jesus turn to the crowd and said when you see clouds beginning to form in the west you say here comes the shower and you are right when the south wind blows you say today will be a scorcher and it is you fools, you know how to interpret the weather signs of the Earth and Sky, but you don't know how to interpret interpret the present times.
Well, alrighty, then I'm going to be completely transparent here and say that I've been dreading this week. I felt like God was pushing me to continue this shirts with series and use the scripture passage, but I just didn't quite know what to do with it all considering all that's happening in our world. Tomorrow we're not physically together dear listeners. I'm trying to imagine that we are and that this is an open Forum where we can discuss this passage together and what it means for us as we navigate this tension-filled world together yet physically distant. What initially strikes me is verse 50, I have a terrible baptism of suffering ahead of me and I am under a heavy burden until it is accomplished. Jesus of course is of course speaking of his upcoming crucifixion. He knows it's coming and it's a burden to Bare. Do you think we can relate that to what we're going to do right now? We've known for some time now that things are going to get worse before they get better. That's what this flattening the curve business is all about. And that's a heavy burden to bear. We don't know how our bodies will handle it if we are exposed. We just want whatever is going to happen to happen so we can deal with it and move on its attention. It's a burden that we're bearing. If we were in our church buildings today, we would be celebrating or at least observing Palm Sunday. We would wave palm branches and talk about Jesus's triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Some of you may have even put some kind of green branches on your home commemorate this day. Is Christian's reading about this day in our Bibles? We see the triumphant entry but we tend to forget that not everybody was happy about this. And that's what Jesus is speaking about in the next few versus people were divided about this man. Jesus is coming to Earth was not a welcome event for everybody. A king had all baby boys under the age of 2 killed in an attempt to get rid of Jesus after he was born. Think about that for a moment. Do you think the families with an infant son in those days were at peace?
Is Jesus approach the path down from the Mount of Olives the whole multitude of his disciples begin to praise? Joyful, praise God. Joyfully and some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him teacher or do your disciples to stop? That was later in Luke chapter 19. From those verses does it sound like they were all on the same page that they were at East.
if we read ahead in continue and Luke 19
Verses 41 through 44 says this but as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city. I had he began to weep how I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace but now it is too late and peace is hidden from your eyes before long. Your enemies will build the ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. They will crush you into the ground and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single Stone in place because you did not recognize it when God visited you.
Are we any different than the crowds of Jesus's day who could see a storm coming across the Mediterranean or they could feel the hot desert wind and know that the temperature of the day was going to be hot, but could also look around and discern what was happening right in front of them. Is Jesus noted back in chapter 12 verses 54 through 55. He repeatedly told the crowd. That followed him that they would have what they would have to do to live life internal.
They felt the Desert Wind and knew it would be hot.
They could see the the storm coming across the Mediterranean and knew it was going to rain but they did not recognize that God was visiting with them.
Jesus wept as he entered Jerusalem because the people just didn't seem to understand the way to peace. Are we any different than those crowds? How are we interpreting? What is going on in our world right now? A Rivers using to carry an umbrella, even though we can clearly see the rain is coming. What's Christians now is our time to shine we've been stripped of everything extraneous in our lives Sports canceled events cancelled or postponed families. They're gathered at home. We are seeds that have been planted this tension can either be the good soil that is fertilized and watered and will help us grow or we can think of it as pavement pizza crust.
Pastor Shane Bishop from Illinois said this recently. It seems clear that there will be another few weeks of this. I am now convinced fewer and fewer of us will return to normal when this ends and it will we will be entering a new reality. This will be more than a wormhole. This will be more Wormhole than an inconvenience. Why is people are making decisions about that future reality right now? What are you doing that you valued more than you thought what are you doing that you will not continue how might your life look differently in a positive way on the other side of this. What have you learned about yourself? That will make you a better person in the future. Asking good questions now lessons the chance that our pain will be wasted and increases the chances that we will grow and learn from it.
When we are released from the stay-at-home order. Are we going to rush back to whatever our previous quote on quote normal was or we going to use this time to create a new normal? Are we going to recognize this time as a visit from God or is Jesus going to continue to weep because we can't see what's right in front of us. A friend recently posted this graphic on Facebook without attribution. And if you're listening to this on podcast and can't see the graphic. It's called it's a graphic of zones titled. Who do I want to be during covid-19 and it describes three zones that we can choose to be in fear learning or growth. If we're in the fear Zone, we're holed hoarding basic supplies that we don't need we're spreading emotions related to fear and anger. We're complaining frequently. We're forwarding all the messages we receive whether we vetted them or not, and we're getting mad easily.
But if we're in the Learning Zone, we're starting to give up what we can't control we're stopping compulsively consuming with hurting us whether that be copious amounts of snack food news broadcast. We're starting to identify our emotions and we're becoming aware of the situation and thinking how to act we're evaluating the information that's coming for us before we spread something false and we recognize that we are all trying to do our best. In the growth zone is where were truly tending the seed of tension. So that will come out on the other side of this a better person than when it began. In this Zone were thinking of others and trying to help we're making our talents available to those who need them. We're living in the present, but we're focused on the future. Or empathetic with ourselves and with others. we're sinking others and we're appreciative of them while keeping a happy emotional state and spreading hope We're looking for a new way to adapt to new changes while practicing quietude patients relationships and creativity. I wish I knew who to attribute this too because it really wraps up the series perfectly and provides a launching point to a future normal. We all have a part to play in the future normal and it is only by living into this growth Zone that will see a new normal. That is far better than what we left behind.
In the Hope United Methodist Church playlist this weekend. YouTube is the song Nobody by Casting Crowns. Some of the lyrics to that song go like this. Moses had stage fright and David brought a rock to a sword fight. You picked 12 Outsiders. Nobody would have chosen and you change the world. Well, the moral of the story is everybody's got a purpose. So when I hear that devil start talking to me saying, who do you think you are? I say, I'm Just a Nobody trying to tell everybody all about somebody who saved my soul. Ever since you rescued me you gave my heart a song to sing and I'm living for the world to see nobody but Jesus.
God picks 12 Outsiders. Nobody would have chosen and change the world. So if you're listening to this right now thinking you're a nobody with nothing to offer. I'm here to tell you that you're wrong. Those original disciples never would have guessed the future impact and if she had on this world and that hasn't changed every one of us will change the world in some way. The disciples chose to discard their old lives and follow Jesus and by doing so change the world for the good it is now up to each one of us to decide where our intent are we going to discard? Our old cluttered lies? Follow Jesus and change the world for good. Well, we going to refuse to recognize this time is a visitation from God and continue down the same path as before. The choice is yours. Make it a good one. Let's pray.
Lourdes
we live in this time of tension we have choices.
We can choose to use this time for growth and for good and to discern your future for us.
Just as you picked 12 Outsiders. Nobody else would have chosen. You've chosen us.
A lot of us wouldn't see ourselves as anybody that can make a difference that your eyes God. We are all somebody.
You change the world with those 12 Outsiders and you continue to change the world with each one of us.
Lord help us to recognize that we all have a purpose. And when the devil starts talkin to us asking us, who do we think we are Lord help us to knock him to the side and say we are somebody.
We are somebody who's just a nobody who's trying to tell everybody all about the true somebody to save their souls.
Lord you gave us your word it helps us to Put words to our prayers when we don't know what to pray and then your Psalms in 91 we pray this.
Those who live in the shelter of the most high will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the Lord. He alone is my refuge my place of safety. He is my God, and I trust him for he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from the deadly disease. He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings is faithful promises are your armor and protection do not be afraid of the Terrors of the night nor the arrow that flies in the day. Do not dread the disease that stalks in the darkness nor the disaster that strikes at midday. So a thousand fall at your side. So 10,000 are dying around you. These evils will not touch you just open your eyes and see how the wicked are punished. If you make the Lord your Refuge if you make the most high your shelter, no evil Will Conquer you no plague will come near your home for he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. They will hold you up with their hands. So you won't even hurt your foot on a stone. You will trample upon lions and cobras. You will crush Fierce lions and serpents under your feet. The Lord says I will rescue those who love me I will protect those who trust in my name when they call on me. I will answer I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them. I will reward them with a long life and give them my salvation.
Lord we're calling on you in this time of trouble intention protect us guide us show us where we can be your hands your feet and your voice in this tension-filled troubled world.