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October 14, 2007
Fred Heard - October 14, 2007
Luke 17:11-19
It’s Thanksgiving—at least in this morning’s gospel. During bible study last Thursday most of our discussion centered on the idea that we should always remember to say thanks to God. Reality is that we do not. Are we more polite with our family and friends when it comes to saying thank you than we are with God? Did anyone ever fail to say thanks to you? How did it feel? The Trinity School children gave me a beautiful picture of St. Francis in my garden last Thursday. It truly is a magnificent photograph…but instantly they looked to me for my reaction and I smiled and said, “Thank you” several times. That is what they were looking for and they have been taught that they should expect that response.
In this morning’s gospel there is a story of ten lepers who were healed of leprosy and only one of them, a foreigner, remembered to thank Jesus. Lepers lose all feeling in their bodies. Their hands and faces are horribly disfigured. They cannot feel cuts or burns. In earlier times they wondered around in search of food. They begged for food and money. They were excluded from their own towns and homes. Only Christians were willing to care for them. The disease was very contagious and often the caregivers ended up getting it. They would often settle in with their former patients and there they would also die. There were no cures. Today there are very good drugs to treat this condition. In biblical times, lepers gathered around garbage dumps looking for food scraps. When they were in groups, they were required to shout “unclean” so people could keep away from them. So when this group of ten lepers heard that Jesus was coming to their area, they called out from a distance "Have mercy on us." There were times, according to the gospels when Jesus would touch and heal the leper. But in this case he told the ten men to go to the priests whose job it was to check and confirm that people did or did not have leprosy. As they went, they found that feeling had come back to their hands and feet, and they knew they had been healed. Nine of them went home.
One of them went back to Jesus and praised God with a loud voice. He fell at Jesus' feet and thanked him for saving him. Jesus asked "Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they?" Jews despised Samaritans for not being religious enough—pure enough—good enough—Godly enough. But this not-so-good man was the one who praised God—who praised God with a loud voice—who prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. The other nine were Jews, who should have known the Psalms of Thanksgiving. Like many people who are healed from dreaded conditions in our hospitals, they took the miracle of healing for granted and never thanked God for their healing. Jesus pointed out that the one man who gave thanks was a despised Samaritan.
Why does thanksgiving make us whole? If you think about it, faith which we discussed in last week’s sermon is being thankful to God. When you look at the beautiful leaves of fall or the flowers in the meadow, or a beautiful mountain or a stunning water fall, you can’t help but feel a sense of thankfulness and often we hear ourselves saying, “Thank you” to no one in particular. But you can't say thank you to chance, or to matter, or to energy. You can only say thank you to a person. And the Person you are thanking is God!" A very simple prayer is “Thank you God.”
During my political years, I spent a lot of time working with our prisons. I wrote the Oregon Community Corrections Act and founded Eastern Oregon Prison in Pendleton. I learned early on that the stability of a prison comes from those who are doing life terms for murder or others who will be in prison for 30 or 40 years. Once I had to go inside the walls representing the Legislature because they were about to riot and it was thought that I could reflect what we were doing in the Legislature. I met with the Lifer’s Club.—these are the meanest of the mean. But the prison is their home. They care about stability and do not want their home to burn down in a riot. They told me they had learned to live a fairly normal life because they know how to say, “thank you” and “excuse me.” I learned much the same thing when I did my Clinical Pastoral Education inside the Forensics Unit of the Oregon State Hospital. When “thank you” and “excuse me” are missing from the vocabulary—severe problems develop.
It is truly a bummer that our new rector has brain cancer. As we pray for him however, I wonder if we are thanking God for sending Mike and Julie, and Brendon and Kim to us. Obviously, this family is demonstrating on a daily basis what courage is all about and I find myself wondering if I could do the same thing if it was me. I wonder if we are thanking God for the leadership Mike has provided our parish with these new services and this new direction that is bringing new members through our doors each week? Much of what we have done since September 9 was long overdue. Many of us believe we were headed for some dark hole in the not too distant future. It took this man with the funny accent and great optimism to pull it off. The staff believes God was leading us in this direction. It took Mike’s vision and openness to pull it off. This man Father Mike is a very special priest and he is proudly our rector. 1 Thessalonians directs us to "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God." Thanksgiving makes us whole.
Thankful people look radiant. They are nice to have around. Grouchy, complaining people have a scowl on their faces and after a time it gets etched into the skin of their face. You can see across the street that they have a sour, crabby look.
I was at someone’s deathbed a couple of days ago and as I watched his wife she was filled with radiance, she was calm, she was rubbing his hand and his arm—she was a presence. She was telling me she is so thankful for his life and what he has done for his community and for her. I have watched his daughters as they walk their dad to the gates of heaven and they too are expressing great thankfulness for this good man and what he has done during his lifetime. He has made his mark. "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God."
Thanksgiving can become a way of life—and as I tell the children of Trinity School about prayer, it can be done at home or on the playground or in bed at night or in the office or while walking in the beautiful fall air. When we see someone we don’t like, think about something or someone you do like and be thankful. Smile to yourself and see what happens. In Alcoholics Anonymous we talk about “giving someone free rent in our head” and I guess I would add our heart.
Often when we are in a good mood and things are going well, we find it easy to give God thanks for this wonderful life. But where is God and where are you when things aren’t going so well? We might also think that it would be easy to thank God if we were healed of leprosy or cancer or some other horrible illness—but since we don’t have those health issues, we can thank God on another day. How is it possible to be thankful when our house burns down or a child dies, or we have financial reverses? In the middle of the crisis, you might have difficulty thanking God for anything. But see what happens if you begin thanking God even in the middle of the disasters in your life. You might have to force yourself—but do it. “Thank you God for seeing me through this mess.” “Thank you God for keeping my family whole.” “Thank you God for the sunshine today.” And this week, “Thank you God for the rain.” When we do this, we begin to change from the inside.
Thanksgiving is really free and so liberating. The alternative bitterness, anger, and grouchiness and complaining to all who will listen is not healthy for you or anyone else. Thanksgiving will turn you into a beautiful person.
Soon we will baptize a child and welcome with thanksgiving the newest member of our family to God’s table. We will follow that with our celebration of the Eucharist. Jesus took the bread and the wine and he gave thanks. The next day he would be condemned, tortured and hung on a cross. Jesus gave thanks…for this ministry that was to turn the world on its axis. In Greek Eucharist means to give thanks. As we take the bread and the wine, we are going to be thankful for all that God has given and provided for us.
Have you truly looked at your life and all that you have to be thankful for? Is there anyone that you could lift into a state of thanksgiving by simply saying thank you—I am glad you are in my life—I am thankful what you have done for me—I am a better person because you are in my life—Thank you for what you have given me or what about a special thank you to that teacher from long ago who made such a difference in your life? Is there someone at Trinity who deserves a word of thanks? People give time and money and effort to minister to the children of this congregation—to provide music—to take care of the buildings—to serve on committees. Could you bless someone here today by saying thank you?
Thanksgiving is the heart of our faith. It is the key to our wholeness as Christians. It is the heart of our church. Let us give thanks to God. AMEN
October 07, 2007
Fred Heard - October 7, 2007
October 7, 2007 Sermon
Luke 17:5-10
And there is faith in God but what about faith in each other? We often express faith in each other or the ones we love—but find it hard to accept faith in God and we can’t see either kind of faith.
2 Timothy tells us in today’s reading: “I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands, for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.” Could anyone tell us what this gift from God looks like? If we were to wrap it in a box—what would we wrap? This reading also talks about grace and that it was given to us in Christ. What does it look like? What does the Holy Spirit look like? In fact, aren’t most of the things that count in this life—impossible to see?
As the disciples ask for more faith, Jesus does not respond by dishing out invisible faith on the spot…like so much oatmeal. He tells them about the power of faith, even a very little faith. “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” That is a lot of power for something that is invisible and small as a mustard seed.
So……if a child came to you and said, “What is faith?” What would you say? First of all you have faith when you believe in something that you cannot see and cannot prove. You have faith when you believe in something no matter what might happen or what anyone tells you. You feel faith and you feel it inside.
That is one of the reasons that I take such great joy in doing weekly chapel at Trinity School here on our campus. The children ask deep and penetrating questions like who is God and where is God. I give them my best answer and they accept it because for now they have faith in Chaplain Fred; and if I say something is so—it certainly is in their minds. They then take that information or bulletin home with them and their parents tell me they repeat what I have said. When I tell them God is everywhere, and that He is at their dinner table, and that they can talk to him anytime even in the middle of the night, they believe that. They believe God goes on vacations with them, and they believe God is with them when their Grandma or Grandpa dies, and they believe it because I told them it is true. Our Trinity children know you cannot see the wind, but we know it is there because we can see what happens when it moves through the trees and the wind blows our hair and it touches our faces. We can’t see germs unless we look under a microscope—but when we get the flu we know there is some kind of a germ inside us. We know we should wash our hands often because they carry germs. We have faith that the sun will come up tomorrow and lighten our world. The children then translate all of this, and faith becomes a gift from God.
And so today the disciples said to Jesus: "Increase our faith!" So where did this request come from? Jesus had said: "Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to anyone by whom they come! It would be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck, and you were thrown into the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble." And so it was at this point the disciples said, "Lord, increase our faith." They were probably thinking, “That is really tough. How do you ever avoid causing one of these little ones to stumble? That's a lot to ask! And who are these little ones? Certainly the children can be counted—but we are also included in that number of little ones. Little ones probably meant those who are vulnerable among us. All of us have been vulnerable at some time or another; and often as adults, it passes and if we are healthy mentally and physically we are pretty steady on our feet. But having been vulnerable as children, and for the most part moved away from it as we grew to adulthood, it often returns during old age. And so as we meet the challenges Jesus places before us we say, “Increase our faith so that we can do it. We can't do it on our own." Sometimes, it would appear that Jesus’ standards are impossible.
Sometimes Jesus’ ministry is overwhelming. The Sermon on the Mount is a good example. Jesus said: "Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Help us, Lord! "Increase our faith."
Jesus also said: "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you so that you may be children of your Father in heaven." We can't love our enemies. Help us, Lord! "Increase our faith!"
And I wonder where ambition enters into this story of the mustard seed. We strive and we teach our children to work hard and they will be successful. One of the worst things we can say about someone is that they are lazy. But is the definition for laziness wrapped up in my goals and what I think you should be doing for yourself? In other words, my cup of tea might not be your cup of tea. How far will you go for success? Who will you step on to move up the ladder? Thomas a Kempis put it this way. "The devil is continually tempting thee to seek high things, to go after honors." What is your price?
When the disciples said, "Increase our faith," Jesus responded with these words, "If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree.' Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you." Perhaps, as Bishop Marc recently said the story of the mustard seed is really about how we grow and what we do with it.
When the disciples said, "Increase our faith," they wanted Jesus to increase their faith. They wanted him to wave a wand over their heads and endow them magically with great faith. They wanted him to say something clever that would "buck them up"—that would give them sudden insight— that would increase their faith.
But Jesus didn't do that. Instead, he told them what would happen if they grew in faith. He told them that they wouldn't have to become spiritual giants. They wouldn't have to possess towering faith. All they would need is faith the size of a mustard seed, one of the world's smallest seeds. If they could develop even that tiny bit of faith, they would tap into God's power so that they could figuratively say to a tree, "Be uprooted and planted in the sea," and the tree would do that. Jesus was suggesting that faith could give the disciples great power. As I look at our Trinity community, I see powerful people—and no it isn’t just money and possessions. I see powerful people who do have money and possessions. I see powerful people who do not have money and possessions. What they both have in common is that they have faith. With that faith, they are tapped into God’s pipeline. I see these people and so do you. I respect them and love them and so do you.
Jesus did not give these disciples faith on the spot—but he did give the disciples the great faith they wanted.
Their faith was shaken when Jesus was taken from them and crucified. After they saw the risen Christ, they became people of great faith—the faith that led to them putting their lives on the line. What did they do right after the crucifixion? They locked themselves in a room because they feared they were next. They denied they knew Jesus because they were afraid. After the resurrection, they went out into the streets, baptizing and preaching, and saving. They built churches. You see they tapped into God’s pipeline and were the leaders we follow even today in Menlo Park. These were ordinary people and we don’t even know their names—but they became saints of the church. Were they powerful? You bet. They had God’s power and they have God’s power today in 2007. At Trinity, we see the people who stand at our welcome table, we see our ushers and our altar guild and our flower guild, and our musicians, our custodians and gardeners, our commission members, our staff, our children going to Sunday school to be with our teachers, our lectors who proclaim the word of God—these are all people of faith—these are all powerful people—these are people with the faith of at least a mustard seed. Jesus did not wave a wand over them or over us. He has helped us all grow in faith. Sometimes growth comes after we have failed and that is part of the lesson of growth in the faith. If you but open your hearts to Jesus Christ, you will be given the opportunity to grow in faith, and remember once we have faith even the size of a tiny mustard seed, Jesus promises: "You can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you." This world would be empty if we did not have faith. Most of the richness that we have in our lives, we accept on faith. We cannot see those riches. AMEN
