Yesterday, I ran over to a sandwich shop for our takeout
lunch. As soon as I got into the door, a
boy named Tyson yelled out…”I loved Vacation Bible School.”
And in case any of the lunch customers did not hear he
yelled it out again. He was so
excited. It was fun hearing and feeling
his joy. And after we talked a bit I
needed to order our lunch so I left the family.
It was a joy for me to be associated with Tyson’s joy. He wanted me to eat lunch at the same table
with his family but I told him that I was headed for home. I slipped out behind him. As I left I heard him say to his family, ”This
has been a very good day!” Just
remembering VBS made it, for him, a fun day.
For Tyson, church is a place to have great fun and learn some great
things.
I am always saddened when I realize that many people do not
agree with Tyson. I am saddened when I think of how many
churches have so little joy. And,
churches have every reason to be joyful.
Many in our land see church as a boring place where devout believers and
their church leaders are uptight and grumpy.
They are seen as people who are judgmental and joyless. And as I talk to people this is ecumenical
and even interfaith. This is a big
problem.
I am convinced that at the center of our faith is an
awareness of God’s grace that leads to joy.
God is not primarily a joyless judge.
God made us with an enormous capacity for joy. Not to enjoy that in church is a sin.
One of the characteristics of CAUMC I have never mentioned
in a sermon, but I want to do so is our joy as a church. You can, in almost every church meeting,
count on great joy and a lot of laughter and some good-natured teasing.
This past week, Penny and I began our vacation with two
joy-filled days helping with our new grandson, Toland. Hopefully, our care for him meant his
parents, Josh and Leena, got some needed rest and time to do a few other
things. Our arrival coincided with
Toland’s first full smiles. And, of
course, we took full credit for that.
Just kidding. But what a
joy! And with our phones we took lots of
photos and videos of him making noises and smiling.
My fondest memories growing up include late nights my
parents spent with visiting with friends and family…the many hours they laughed
and laughed until late at night into the morning hours. I knew that the following morning they would
be tired but much more full of joy. And I
am so grateful that the church programming in our home church provided
enjoyment and joy. I cherish also the
times when our son was small…the joys of laughing together. I cannot wait to hear my grandson’s
laughter.
HEAVEN
Churches have every reason to be joyful. One of the most joyful parts of faith is our
realization that heaven is for us.
Thinking of heaven and our privilege of our being there someday is a
joyful thing. I expect that seeing God
will be the greatest joy of all. For the Christian joy is happiness in God,
in this life and the next. And joy
is not a fleeting feeling that comes and goes; it is part of our connection
with God which gives us identity, stability, and hope. Joy in God is one of the ways we are helped
through the hard times.
JOYS TOGETHER
And who could not enjoy the dance today? Thank you Kate and Audrey for initiating this
for us and for the youth and their willingness to learn and be a part of the
joy this morning.
REMEMBERING THE PAST
In addition to our friend Tyson remembering his joy at
Vacation Bible School, we have lots of great memories that bring us joy at
CAUMC. I remember the first day, someone
came up the ramp when we put improved entrance on the narthex. I will feel the same kind of joy the day when
an elevator will provide an easier way to get up and down in this building.
THE WORLD HAS BEEN FULL OF DIFFICULT EVENTS
The last month has brought to us all a deep sadness: 19
firefighters who lost there lives in AZ, the plane crash in SF, the train
accident in Canada where 50 died. And I
have been praying daily for the people of Egypt that they will be guided to a
stable government.
I remember conversations with those who have been on mission
trips. There is a startling realization
that occurs at some point in the experience.
Those we go to serve those who have little, yet often they have so much
joy. Here we are Americans blessed more
than we know with available food, amazing wealth, clean water, medical
achievements, and technology beyond belief.
Even with all of these opportunities, we sometimes have less joy than
those who do not have these things.
Paul, if he were here today, would want us to know that technology may
multiply the opportunities for happiness, but technology does not necessarily
generate joy. Joy comes from God…a
different source. When my mother calls
me after receiving another photo of Toland, I give thanks for the
technology…but I give thanks more for the love and joy. Joy is
happiness in God.
I mention these because the world is in need of communities
of mutual support which intentionally invite God to work among them. For each of us has been through hard times
and needed the support of a group. Someone
we needed and loved passed away or left.
Or perhaps we had an illness or treatments that were difficult to
endure. Our Christian faith declares
that when somewhere, somehow, someone came to fill our emptiness. I do not believe that comfort just comes only
through determination, or busyness, or time expired. These help, but what heals the human heart
and soul is the Holy Spirit, a gift from God.
God grants us relief and the strength to go on. And then, thank God, moments of genuine joy
return.
PROCESS
This gift of grace comes from unexpected places. One pastor was telling the story of how he
was with a family through a difficult funeral and at the family’s request accompanied
them back to their home where the church had delivered sandwiches and salads. When they got to the house they were alarmed
to see a plumber’s truck outside. The
people watching the house and preparing the food had called the plumber to deal
with a problem. What was unexpected is
that the plumber turned out to be a former student of the one who died. He expressed his gratitude for this wonderful
teacher and his interaction with the grieving family turned out to be a great healing
influence for everyone present. When the
world’s problems weigh heavy, there is a Holy Spirit that is stronger than the
hurt of the world and greater than our weakness in dealing with that.
In a world where violence and greed are so rampant, churches
need to remember that prayer is a great resource. Too much of the time, we tend to see prayer
as our last resort. After we have tried
everything else, we try prayer. Actually,
Paul says prayer should be first. God
put into us the capacity for prayer and an urge that turns us toward our
Creator in the ways of thankfulness and joy.
This week I read about some Tibetian monks who collect water bottles and
turn them into prayer wheels. It is a
symbol of how our inclination toward God survives even in the mess we are
making of creation.
I invite you to communion.
It is gift to increase our understanding of the will of God. Some of you might receive ideas for living
life more faithfully. For some of you it
might be a joyful acceptance of the person God made you to be. For someone else, it is acceptance of
something he cannot change. And I am
hoping God will continue the way this church laughs and has great hope for the
future.
One of our Sunday School classes is studying the
Psalms. Over and over people are
expressing their joy that God saved them from slavery. In the gospels, Jesus actually uses joy to
describe one of the goals of discipleship.
Jesus enjoyed wedding parties, great conversations around the table,
visiting new towns, spending time with children, explaining the joys of the
kingdom, and healing. These were all
occasions for joy. Paul urges us in
another place to “rejoice always” and he tells us that joy is one of the fruits
of the Spirit.
Paul spent so much of his energy telling people how much God
loved them. He spent a lot of time being
jailed, being roughed up, running from mobs, defending himself before those in
the early church who could not give up the law.
The Christians at Colossae supported him, loved him, cared about him,
helped him, and followed him.
We want to do church faithfully. We recommit today to hospitality and
fruitfulness. We want to encourage
people and help them find greater faith.
And we want to people to leave our church programs enlivened in what
they do.
Would someone write to us saying they experience new life
and encouragement because of College Avenue UMC? Would someone write to us saying they have
heard of our faith? The answer is
yes. And one of the reasons is our joy.
No comments:
Post a Comment