Hearing Other Voices

Focus Statement

We can be so busy and focused n our mission that we stop listening.

Yet, as Christians, we cannot fully engage in our mission

without taking the time to hear the voices on the side of the road.

Point of Relation

I am not sure how many of you have seen or are fans of A Nightmare Before Christmas...

It is one of my favorite Christmas movies EVER...

Of course, that film was produced by Disney,

Was written and directed by Tim Burton...

And was a musical from one of my favorite composer, Danny Elfman...

Who also did the voice of Jack Skellingotn.

In fact, I love this movie so much, that I have the closing scene in the graveyard of Halloweentown,

tattooed to for the cuff of my tattoo sleeve.

Jack Skellington represents me, and Sally represents Bernadette…

who has been my rock and moral compass.

Here’s a brief sum up of the film:

Each season has its own town.

Halloweentown is where all the ghouls, ghosts, goblins and monsters live...

And their soul job is to prepare tricks and treats for people on Hallowoeen.

One day, Jack Skellington, who is the most prominent pillar of Halloweentown, realizes he has grown tired of Halloween

He feel he has lost his sense of purpose, wonder and excitement.

And he ventures off into the woods where he finds a door in a tree that goes to Christmastown.

To make a long story short, he is so enamored with Christmastown and Santa Claus,

Who he mistakenly calls Sandy Claws,

That he decides that his purpose is to kidnap Sandy Claws and take his spot as Old Saint Nick.

Of course, as you can imagine, all sorts of disastrous things take place.

While most of Halloween town loved the idea...

They are all monsters after all....

there was one person who was not sure it was a good idea.

That person was Sally, who had a crush on Jack and who loved him.

Now that the scene is set, let’s watch what happened.

[Video Clip]

Things to Consider

We as a church can be so focused on our “plans” that we ignore the people on the wayside,

especially those who are “different” from us in some way, or many ways.

This can be true even when we have the best intentions of serving others.

Let’s look at a common example...

A lot of church’s give out scholarships to kids who are members...

And that is done to support them in their education.

What a beautiful thing to do.

Our church has done that in the past when we have kids graduating.

What a blessing!

With that said, we have sometimes let policies set to fulfill our mission get in the way of listening.

Our policy has been that kids who are active members of the congregation are eligible to apply for the scholarship.

The intent, I am sure, was to encourage the active participation of our youth...

And that is, overall, a good intention.

But what does it mean to be active?

If they are regularly attending worship?

What if they’ve found their home in Youth Group…but find connecting in worship difficult? Do they count?

What if they want to come, but their parents won’t take them?

Or, what if health reasons physical, psychological or otherwise hinder someone from coming?

This actually happened in our church…and someone was excluded from the scholarship.

This happened before my time here,

But when I found that out, I brought it to the attention of our leadership, who also didn’t know that had happened...

And we righted the wrong and sent that student a belated Scholarship, much to their shock and delight.

Again, don’t get me wrong…there was no bad intention…it was simply putting our mission in place...

Just like Jack Skellington...

Without stopping to listen to the person and discerning their need.

What Scripture Says

Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.

That was his mission. He was heading to Jerusalem for passover and to give his life up as a sacrifice for our sins.

That was his mission. That was what Jesus was focused on.

Bartimaeus, an outsider of society, knew who Jesus was and shouted, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Correctly naming who Jesus was demonstrated that he had a voice and knew how to use it in the world,

despite the fact that he was blind and poor.

While not everyone has a voice (some people are nonverbal),

we all have value and inherent worth, regardless of our differences...

and regardless of what others may think of us.

Marginalized people are often able to recognize the presence and work of God

and connect with it in ways that advantaged people do not,

just as Bartimaeus identified Jesus as the Son of David and called him into this sacred moment of healing.

Even though Jesus was on his way to face his biggest challenge,

he stopped to listen to Bartimaeus.

The people following Jesus tried to quiet Bartimaeus because they were focused on the task at hand,

but Jesus stopped...to...listen.

Jesus did not just use his ears but listened with his heart and spirit.

He was open to who Bartimaeus was and what he may need.

He did not presume to know what Bartimaeus needed,

just like we ought not to presume to know what someone who is different from us may need.

Jesus made room for Bartimaeus by asking “What do you want me to do for you?”

Jesus demonstrated that we must first make room

in ourselves:

in our hearts,

in our churches,

and in our communities,

before we can receive others.

We should not assume we know what a person needs

based solely on our own worldview or cultural perspective.

Which is why the oppressed, the underprivileged, and minority groups NEED to be listened to by all of us.

Their lives, their experiences, their struggles, their concerns…MATTER!

Jesus understood this.

Bartimaeus threw off his cloak, which was of great importance to him.

He was willing to give up what was meaningful to him in order to go to Jesus,

to respond to Jesus calling him.

What things of value (e.g., traditions, worship styles, etc.)

may we need to give up to respond to Jesus’ call on our lives in this moment?

Are there things we cling to because they make us comfortable,

but that might be impeding our call to faith?

What This Means For You

In today’s society, with information coming at us from all directions,

it is important to stop and listen.

Have you ever just stopped what you were doing to listen?

It is important that you hear and respect the voices of all those with whom you come into contact.

Keep your heart open to where God is already present and how God is already moving.

What This Means For Us

What voices are we as a church not hearing or are resistant to hearing?

How would our church be different if we listened to those voices?

How can we as a church be more intentional about hearing the voices on the road?

How would our church communities and ministries change if we incorporated these voices?

In light of our encounter with Jesus, how is God calling us to make space for others as a church, community and world?

This week think of one or two ways to become more aware of the voices on the side of the road and how we can create space for them.

I would love for you to email those ideas to our church at the email address on your screen.

They will be forwarded to me and our church leadership for consideration. Amen? Amen.