This post is
extremely long, but here's the gist. I was given the opportunity to
preach at my church this morning and it was the first full sermon I've ever
written. Keep in mind that I found out Thursday and worked 12 hours
Friday and Saturday. Somewhere in between lessons, lifeguarding classes, open
swim, and pool parties this is what we got. For those who weren't able to
hear it live, I thought I'd post it. The scriptures are posted first, because
without them, the sermon may not make a lot of sense. Hope you enjoy!
From 1 Samuel
15-16
Then Samuel went
to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. Samuel did not see
Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the
Lord was sorry that he had made Saul king over Israel.
The Lord said to
Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being
king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse
the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” Samuel
said, “How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said,
“Take a heifer with you, and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’
Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you
shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you.” Samuel did what the Lord
commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him
trembling, and said, “Do you come peaceably?” He said, “Peaceably; I have come
to sacrifice to the Lord; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the
sacrifice.” And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the
sacrifice.
When they came,
he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is now before the
Lord.” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the
height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see
as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the
heart.” Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. He said,
“Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he
said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” Jesse made seven of his sons pass
before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of
these.” Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There
remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to
Jesse, “Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.” He
sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was
handsome. The Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; for this is the one.” Then
Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers;
and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward.
Samuel then set out and went to Ramah.
Mark 4:26-34
He also said,
“The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and
would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does
not know how. The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head,
then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in
with his sickle, because the harvest has come.”
He also said,
“With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for
it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the
smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes
the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of
the air can make nests in its shade.”
With many such
parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not
speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his
disciples.
SERMON
Today’s gospel reading comes
from Mark. The passage is a familiar parable about a mustard seed
and how the tiniest seed grows into the greatest of all bushes with long
branches and plenty of shade for the birds to nest in. We recently
were looking at houses for my sister in College Station as she embarks on her
journey of achieving a PhD. My dad, who seems to have the most
knowledge and experience with making this type of investment was reviewing some
of the houses and commenting on the lack of trees in some yards while
appraising their value. Of course, I had a simple solution: “If you
want more trees, you can always plant them yourself.” He chuckled
and then reminded me how slowly trees grow. Obviously the trees
wouldn’t be providing much shade until well after we were addressing Brittney
as Dr. Becker. I have a deeper appreciation now for our own trees
that provide shade in my front yard, planted thirty years ago. Waiting
for seeds to sprout, trees to grow, and flowers to blossom takes patience,
which is not particularly a strength of mine. What I have become
particularly good at over the past few years is telling stories. Every
time I come home, I have more stories to tell and usually a pretty big audience
to listen, so I have had lots of practice in recounting my adventures, offering
the most exciting details in a fairytale fashion. I guess that’s why
I love the gospels so much – a collection of stories with the most exciting
details and ultimately a happy ending.
The gospels are full of
parables, like the one in Mark about the mustard seed. Jesus always spoke to
the crowds in these parables and explained their meanings in private to his
disciples. Personally, I have always been a fan of deciphering codes
and solving puzzles. Growing up, I had several puzzle books and and
even now, I get a thrill reading Dan Brown novels and watching detective shows,
hoping to solve the mystery before the protagonist. The simple crime
report is not as exciting as the rest of the story, with the juicy details and
the false leads. Maybe, Jesus’ parables were more than instructions
in layman’s terms; he knew how to attract a crowd and his puzzles kept the
audience wanting more. In our modern days, we have most of the
answers (or so we think). With our side notes in our bibles, most of
our questions about the scriptures are answered. Is that why our
excitement about such a great book has dwindled? Maybe a little more
mystery, a little more suspense, or a little more drama (because we need more
drama) would reestablish our interest, restore our initial attraction.
Think about the last time
you walked into a bookstore…or a movie rental place. Chances are you
have heard of a few books or movies, some have been suggested, and some have
been given really low ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, which is the internet
authority on new movies. Maybe once in a while, you’re feeling a
little adventurous, so you pick out the movie you’ve never heard of. Let’s
examine this situation. In Hollywood today, very few movies include
the following: good acting, a good plot, and good production. Now,
the critics have a longer list of criteria to give films a precious five stars,
but for me they just have to be good in those three areas (good, not
great). Usually it’s the picture on the cover that first gets your
attention. Maybe it looks like a familiar situation, the outrageous
family who remind you of your own childhood, the romantic comedy that will
either make you laugh or cry (both are favorable), or the action-packed movie
that’s sure to have some explosions and special effects that keep dad on the
edge of his seat. I’m sure by this point, you can all imagine the times
that you have encountered this situation and it turned out poorly. Little
secret: this scenario rarely has a happy ending. But, if you are
lucky, you may discover a diamond in the rough. A movie that others
didn’t find appealing may hit you just right on the perfect day. Now come into
the bookstore with me. I know it’s a slightly less familiar place
for some. Look on the shelves at all the new books, with their
exciting covers and rave reviews on the back. As you scan the
shelves, you come upon this book (Bible), a blank cover with two words on the
front, “Holy Bible”. Maybe you’ve heard of it, some good reviews,
some not so good. You’re not so sure whether this is a chance you
want to take. It looks different than the other books. Inside
there are more books and chapters and verses. You are a little
overwhelmed; where should I start? Do I have to read the whole
thing, cover to cover? Is there a Spark Notes version? It is rather
thick.
Let’s say you start from the
beginning. You meet a great God who created everything. You’re
fascinated, but a little apprehensive. Imagining this mighty being
frightens you a little, because you’re such a small creature in such an
expansive world. You may feel lonely in such a big world, or if
you’re like me, your sense of control becomes shaky, when you realize just how
small of a piece of the puzzle you are. You skip forward a little
ways and stumble upon today’s Old Testament reading from first Samuel: Samuel
calls upon the sons of Jesse, searching for the Lord’s chosen king of
Israel. The first son, Eliab, was thought by Samuel to surely be the
anointed one. But the Lord says to Samuel, “Do not look on his
appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for
the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but
the Lord looks on the heart.” None of the first seven sons, strong and
able-bodied are chosen, and when Samuel comes to the shepherd boy, David, the
Lord says, “Rise and anoint him; for this is the one.”
Suddenly, you feel
reassured. Maybe there is something in this book that you can relate
to. This mighty God obviously cares about David, and he’s just a
shepherd boy; maybe, he has something special planned for my life too. As
you continue reading, you find this guy David slaying a giant with a slingshot. David
didn’t grow into a giant or have any super human powers; he was simply a boy
chosen by the Lord with a incomparable faith. On the outside, David
may not be the most exciting choice for a hero or a warrior, but God chose him
because of what was inside. “The Lord does not see as mortals see;
they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Too
bad our technology hasn’t created some kind of x-ray vision to help us see past
outward appearance and inside the heart. I’m sure Apple is working
on that.
Most of you know that I have
an overwhelming passion for kids. Over the past few years, I’ve
realized that the reason this passion is so strong is because it’s a God-given
love. Last summer, while serving in New Mexico at Four Corners
Native American Ministry, I sat down with three other students to reflect on
our mission and what we had learned. One question that we had
focused on throughout the week was “where do you see God here, and in your
daily life?” That answer was easy for me; I see God through the
innocence of children and see it especially in the injustices that children
receive through means of abuse and neglect. That’s why I am looking
especially forward to this next chapter in my life. I have the
opportunity to be a mentor and provide spiritual guidance for children who may
have no parental involvement in their lives or who may have experienced trauma
that makes it hard for them to trust an adult figure. I know that
their strength and will to overcome these obstacles is only possible with a God
big enough to turn a mustard seed to an enormous bush, a God who can turn a
shepherd into a warrior, and a God that can see through the outward appearance
into the heart. These kids that I love are the ones who sit in our
principals’ offices, start fights to get someone’s attention, and sometimes
hurt others to share their overwhelming pain. Romans 12 says, “Do
not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” I know with
God’s strength and the support of a community of believers, these children can
and will overcome evil. With a faith like David, we will ride into
battle and fight evil, together. Hopefully, that action-packed story
can be shared soon, and we will find our happy ending.
Today is a rather special
day, because today we get to celebrate the men who care about us most, our
fathers. Like most holidays, each family celebrates a little
differently. Some have traditions, while some may pass it by like
another normal day. Some dads play golf as they celebrate one more
year of daughters robbing their wallets; some spend time with children they
haven’t seen lately and grandchildren who bring tremendous joy and
energy. On this day next year, I will be spending the day with
children who were abused or may have never met their fathers; that situation
makes today’s celebration look a little different for me. Blessed
with such a great father of my own, it can be hard to relate today’s sentiments
to someone who has not had a positive experience. Our earthly
fathers are going to make mistakes, and we can only pray that God gives us the
strength to forgive those mistakes despite how minor or major the
offense. Whether your dad is sitting next to you or not, be thankful
today for your father, other men who have positively impacted your life
regardless of a biological connection, and a Father in heaven who gave His only
son to die for you. You are extremely loved and blessed from here to eternity.
Standing here today is such
a privilege. This is home for me, where it all started. Maybe
five or ten years ago, some would have expected me to be up here today, but
more than likely they saw many other paths that I would likely be
following. Five years ago, I thought I was going to be a lawyer and
ten years ago, I didn’t have a clue. Even a few months ago, I
thought I’d be doing a fellowship at Yale or starting a doctorate program in
the fall. So, why, you might ask is this girl giving up a high
paying salary and the glamorous lifestyle for a 300 dollar a month stipend, a
dorm room, and cafeteria meals? Because I’ve read this book, and
despite the cover, it is a great story and one that I want to share. This
is one lesson I’ll never be able to forget; never judge a book by its cover.
