Luke 2:22-40

“My Eyes have Seen My Salvation”

It seemed like Christmas had not even ended, and the world was ready to move on.  On Christmas afternoon, I was in the car on my way to the airport to fly out to visit family, listening to the radio.  The commercials were no longer about Christmas sales and gifts, but about weight loss plans and New Year’s Eve parties.  The radio stations that were non-stop Christmas music that very morning, were now back to their “regular” programming.  Before the day was over, the world was moving onto the next thing.

            It can sometimes feel like that is what happens with the story of Jesus – we spend time with the baby in the manger, and then before we can blink twice he is an adult being baptized in the Jordan River. But today is the day we get to savor the infancy of Jesus – those first tender days when he cooed at his parents, snuggled in close at naptime, and probably had his share of nights when he cried more than he slept.  Our reading for today, before we fast forward in time to his trip to the temple when he was 12, and then to his adulthood, is one that shows us the infant, and how he was raised.

            Mary and Joseph were devoutly Jewish.  At 8 days Jesus was circumcised, and now, at 40 days, he is brought to the temple.  Mary has come for her purification, and the family has come to participate in the ancient practice of presenting their child to the Lord.  Part of that presentation and setting aside their child as belonging to God is making a sacrificial offering.  Mary and Joseph are so poor that they can only offer a pair of turtledoves or two pigeons as their sacrifice.[1]  In their presentation of their son, Mary and Joseph demonstrate their confidence in God’s promises.  We would not expect less from these two.  Mary heard the voice of an angel and proclaimed that she would bear the son of God.  They followed the civil rules  -  traveling to Bethlehem for the census, and now continue to follow the religious rules of traveling to the temple.  Their devotion is evident, and provides the basis for our understanding that Jesus was raised to be observant of the laws – both civil and religious -  and to practice his faith from the time he was born. 

            Mary, Joseph and Jesus enter the temple grounds.  There are over 30 acres of land and buildings, and many people were there.  The odds of Simeon and Anna running into Mary, Joseph, and their child were slim to none.  However, the Holy Spirit guides Simeon to the temple that day, and the encounter happens.  Jesus upbringing is not the focus of the passage – it is what happens when he is brought to the temple that Luke wants us to experience.  Jesus is recognized by someone outside of the family for who he is by Simeon and Anna.  Not only did these two see him, they saw him for who he was – different from any other infant who entered the gates before or after.  Author Madeline L’Engle – she wrote a Wrinkle in Time – says this about the meeting, “eight days after the baby was born he was circumcised and he was called Jesus, because that was the name the angel had told Joseph to give him…  How remarkable, how beyond the bounds of ordinary possibility, that two old people should see a small baby and recognize that he was the Light of the World!  Was it perhaps because they were so old, so near to the Beyond, that they were able to see what caught up in the cares of life could not see?”[2]

            L’Engle’s description of Simeon and Anna is so beautiful, and so true – that these two aged individuals were so near to the Beyond that they could see what people caught up in the cares of the everyday could not see.  Simeon recognizes the child at once – he knows that this child is the salvation he has been waiting so long to see with his own eyes.  He had been promised that before he died, he would see the salvation of the world, and he knows this is it.  His faith in God is so deep, so complete, that he knows this promise will be answered.  He woke up that morning, and went about what he usually does.  Washed his face, ate breakfast, visited with friends, and maybe went out to the shop.  But then he is called to the temple by that voice in his gut that he cannot ignore – the voice of the Holy Spirit.  And he goes.  Anna, the widow, was 84 years old.  She had not left the temple since the death of her husband, and she too knew that she would see the savior before she died.   They are together when the young couple comes in, and they immediately know.  Simeon reaches out his arms to hold the baby, and the tiny Jesus is placed in his calloused hands.  The old man cradles the infant, and you can see the joy on his face, the Light of the World brings light to his eyes.  Simeon gazes into the eyes of Jesus, and he recognizes him.  The child whose conception was announced by angels and whose birth was marked by a star looks back, and Simeon sees him for who and what he really is.  God.  Simeon is so close to the Beyond, that he can see the Beyond in this child.  He prays, he sings, he offers these words to God, “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; ³⁰for my eyes have seen your salvation, ³¹which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, ³²a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”

            But Simeon does not stop there. He has some hard words for Mary to hear as well – words about the life and death of her son.  In him will be the falling and rising of a great nation, and in that, Mary’s heart will be broken. Anna too, recognizes that this child is different, that he is their salvation.  She is called prophet, and her words are not recorded by Luke.  But her response made enough of an impression, that when Luke writes this account more than 70 years after the destruction of the temple, the gist of Anna’s response remains.  Like Simeon, she praises God, and she tells everyone who will listen to her that this child is the redemption of Israel.  He is the one for whom they have waited for so very long.

            In Anna and Simeon we see the first response from those outside the immediate family and those present at the birth.  We also see patience.  These two had waited for so long – their entire lives – to see their salvation, and here he is.  They saw him with their own eyes, and Simeon tells God that he can “go in peace” – the final promise of his life has been fulfilled.  Just as the calendar moves pages from year to year, just as the Christmas decorations are put away and we begin to look forward, the cycle of life also continues here.  In the beginning of the life of Christ, we see the end of the lives of Anna and Simeon.  In the newness of the life of Christ, we see two aged individuals with wisdom, knowledge, faith, and patience that we can all learn from.

            If we were to make a list of things our culture values, youth would be at or near the top of the list.  There are products to hide wrinkles, cover grey hair, make us look younger, act younger, and appear to be younger.  The Holy Grail, it seems is really the fountain of youth.  How many times have we heard phrases like “60 is the new 40” or been really exited because the cashier at the grocery store asked to see our ID when we bought a bottle of wine.  Supermodels advertise entire skin regimens to take years of our face in a mater of weeks, and yesterday I saw an infomercial for facelifts that can be done quickly and discreetly.  Being seen as “old” is frowned upon in our culture, and I wonder how Anna and Simeon would have fit in today. 

            “Old” has become a bad word to use to describe someone.  Yet, I argue that it is from those who are older than we are that we can learn the most.  Certainly in a family setting, but also in community settings.  Two teenagers took their infant into the temple, and it was those who had more wisdom, experience, and knowledge who proclaimed with full force that this child was the messiah for whom they had been waiting.  Perhaps it is easier to see beyond the immediate when you have lived a full life and have a different perspective?  Perhaps, the time spent waiting had cultivated a sense of patience in the two?  But it was through their eyes that we experience Christ in today’s reading.  We can also see the benefits of being part of a larger religious community.  These young parents had no idea what to expect that day  -remember Mary was still a teenager.  And they come to their house of worship and can draw upon the experience of those who have raised children.  It is at church that we can experience the same thing.  In this reading, it is the old who clearly can see and name their salvation, and they guide the young.  There is a community present in the temple, just as there is a community present here.  A community that provides a safe space for those in all ages and stages of life to worship and work together.  We see youth being led by those who are 10, 15, and 20 years older than them.  We watch as some of our retired members teach Sunday School.  And if you have ever been to dinner with the Mothers of Young Children group, you have seen those who have gone before passing their wisdom along to those who follow behind. 

When babies are born, we have such hopes for them.  Parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles and siblings and friends dream and imagine their futures.  What will be the first words she speaks?  How far will his first steps take him? Will they cry when they get on the bus to go to kindergarten or look back and wave?  Is he a writer or is she a scientist?  Will they like sports?  Who will the first girlfriend or boyfriend be?  Who will be the last?  Weddings, families, careers are all imagined, hopes created, and wishes wished for the life of this child.  There is a wider circle beyond the immediate family who hope and wish the same things, and here at church we do that also.  But sometimes, we need to hear about the things beyond wishes and dreams.  Not only when raising children, but just traveling through life.  Couples marrying can benefit from the wisdom of those who have been married for 30 years.  Students heading off to college may want to hear about the times that will be hard, not just the parties and fun.  When a spouse dies, those who have experienced similar events can offer council and support.  Sometimes, we need the voices of those who have gone before to say the hard things to us as well -  to help us correct when we have veered off course, or see the situation in a different way.  Simeon and Anna, as much joy as they proclaim, also have hard news to tell.  We can imagine it took courage for Simeon to tell Mary and Joseph all that he knew about the life of their son.  And we must also have the faith and courage to say that hard things, in love to one another.  Simeon was preparing Mary for the difficulties that lay ahead, and we have that responsibility to each other to do that as well.  To say that there will be nights when the baby will not sleep and you will want to do anything to make the tears stop – both yours and the child’s.  To say that after the divorce there will be days that the world does not make sense.  Someone to say that the honeymoon will end, and reality will set in, or that in time the pain of death does lessen and you will find a way to move forward, even if you cannot see it now.  Not to encourage you to focus on the negative, but to provide a safe loving space to come when it happens.  Those who have gone before have the wisdom to share for those who come after.

I get to spend a lot of time with the “older adults” in our congregation – it is something I truly enjoy. It is rare for me to leave a visit, a lunch or a field trip without learning something from those who have lived longer than I have and who have experience to share.  I’m not going to tell any tales – I think what happens on the bus stays on the bus — but what strikes me is how my faith is deepened by the time we spend together.  Whether it is hearing about a devotional practice of one who has been reading the Bible for hours every day for over 70 years, or hearing a grandparent talk about praying for their grandchild, the work God is still doing is evident.  Not only am I privileged to hear the marvelous stories of youth in a time before my birth, but there is almost always a nugget of wisdom in the conversations we have.  It is not an intentional “now I’m going to teach you” but a natural part of our time together.  Sometimes it happens in the kitchen at Friendship Table as we gather to cook and serve, sometimes it happens at a table in Chik fil-A.  Those who are closer to the beyond, as L’Engle put it, have a way of showing how they encounter Christ that is fearless and bold.  The concerns of “what might people think” are no longer immediate, and so often what is spoken by our oldest friends and members is their encounter with Christ.  They help me see Christ in ways I had not imagined.

Simeon encountered God.  And he recognized his salvation – he saw the salvation of the world and he announced it to all who would hear.  He had patiently waited.  He had sat for a long time waiting for this child to enter into his life, and when the child arrived, he tenderly cradled him and announced that this was indeed the event he had been waiting for all these years.  How do we recognize the light of the world in our lives?  How do you see the Christ-child each day?  Together, we recognize him here.  Together we see him when we feed the hungry, when we teach children, when we sing music or attend meetings.  Together we encounter the living Christ.  We learn from each other, we speak the truth in love, and we proclaim the ways in which the light of the world has broken into our world.  Each of us is at a different age and stage.  And each of us has an experience with Christ to share with one another. 

As we look back on the year that has just ended, and look forward on the year that is ahead, ask yourself this – How have you seen the child that was born to Mary and Joseph not just as a baby, but as God with us?  Who helps you recognize the light of the world when you may miss it?  What memories of those who are older and wiser help you listen for God?  Who are Anna and Simeon for you? Or, are you Anna or Simeon, showing Christ to those around you?  How do you recognize God in your midst?  And how do you respond when you meet Him?

One way we recognize Christ in our midst is when we come to this table.  We sit with all those who have come before, and will come after, and we experience Christ.  We cannot hold the child as Simeon did, we cannot gaze into his eyes as Anna had the chance to do.  What we can do is gather here – we can see our salvation in the breaking of the bread and the raising of the cup.  We can touch Christ when we touch hands passing the plates of bread and juice.  We tangibly experience Christ at this table – we respond to the news of his birth and later his death by remembering and encountering him here.  Just as we move forward in time packing up the Christmas decorations and turning the calendar page, the Christ child moves forward as well.  He is born, he lives, and he dies.  Through this act, our eyes can indeed see our salvation.  Through our community, we can share that experience with each other.  As we make resolutions for this year, I encourage you to consider making some different resolutions – resolve to find a way to recognize Christ everyday.  Resolve to not only recognize Christ, but to share that recognition as Simeon and Anna did.  Resolve to defy the culture of youth and hear the words of wisdom of those who went before.  It was in a child that an old man saw his salvation.  How will you see that child, and how will you respond to the ways he will shape your life?  In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

Rev. Julie A. Jensen

1/1/2012 

First Presbyterian Church, Cartersville, GA

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[1] Commentary on Gospel by Holly Hearon (workingpreacher.org).

[2] Imaging the Word

Last week our church, through the Deacon’s Fund, helped a family here in town that is staying at the Good Neighbor Homeless Shetler.  This family is a woman and a 2 year-old that she is raising for another member of her family. Their car had broken down and the mom had no transportation to and from work.  She was walking, in the dark and cold, late at night with the toddler in a stroller until she could get her car fixed.  The auto repair place graciously fixed the car so that she could safely get back and forth to work, and released the vehicle back to her before the bill was settled.  Now the child and mom had a reliable, safe way to get to and from work – she just needed to settle the bill.  The Director of the shelter called us, which is not a usual occurance, and asked if we could help.  We paid the bill and on Monday the Director of the Shelter came by with a note for us.  The guest does not know who her benefactors are, and so she wrote a note to thank us for our generousity, kindness, and love.  Affixed to the outside of the envelope was a handprint cut from paper with the fruits of the spirit on it – Love, Hope, Peace, Faith, and Joy.  The handprint is that of the child who no longer has to be out in the dark and the cold while her caregiver walks home from work.

I am grateful for the agencies and organizations in our community that work together to care for those in need.  While a $140 car repair bill may not be insurmountable to many of us, for this family, it was.  When you are getting back on your feet and working paycheck to paycheck, every little bit helps.  Last night, our Deacon’s served almost 100 people at Friendship Table.  That is almost 100 people in our community who had a hot meal last night and some to take home with them.  They had a chance to come in for a little while out of the 41 degree, rainy weather and spend some time in fellowship and experience hospitality.  Our Deacons who had not served in a while were awed by the numbers and the folks who said “Thank you.”

This weekend at the church is our International and Community Christmas Market.  We will be open from Saturday 10-4 and Sunday 9:30-2.  In addition to the goods from 10,000 Villages, we will also have community agencies with information and opportunities to support their work in the community. In my mind, this is not as much about Christmas shopping as it is being part of a community that affirms we care about those who need us.   Jesus was not born in a hospital, but in a stable.  He was not dressed in fancy smocked outfits with monagrams on the front, but wrapped in strips of cloth – whatever his parents could find.  Last night, as I counted the numbers of men, women, and children standing in line, I had a flash of Jesus being born to folks just like those standing there.  Not only to them, but for them. One of  our calls as followers of Jesus is to care for those who may not have a place to live or meals to eat.  Not only care for them, but also care about them.  There is a difference.

Than handrpint is on my desk – I’m having a hard time letting it move to the bulletin board in our office.  In this tiny hand are the fruits of the spirit, and the messages of Christ – love, faith, hope, peace, and joy. Looking at that tiny handprint, thinking about those who stood in line to eat, and those who serve them, I see the difference  even small actions can make.  The hope offered by paying a car repair bill or offering a hot meal without questions, expectations, or judgment.  I am grateful to be part of this work, work that lets me find ways to see an infant in a manger every day.

 

 

I am coming to the place where one of the places I consistently find joy in my week is the weekly chapel service I lead with our After School Program children.  Around 150 children, grades K-3, their teachers and para-pros, a piano player and I participate in weekly worship and singing.  It is loud, a little crazy, not always predictable, and really fun.  The last 2 weeks I have walked out of the sanctuary so glad for the time I get to spend telling the smallest people in the building the they are loved by God.  Today, the crux of the lesson was that I cared enough about them to count out 747 small rocks into a bowl and know exactly how many were in there, but only God loves us enough to know how many hairs are in our heads –all of us all the time. 

For many of these children, our church and their school may be one of the few places they hear how great they are.  They are labeled “at risk” and have to be referred to our program for poor test scores and academic performance.  We are working hard to increase our diversity – -the population is mostly Hispanic.  Some are churched, some are not.  For most, I am the first woman minister they have seen.  It does not seem to phase them. 

My goals for chapel are pretty low, between you and me.  Teach them that this is God’s house.  Tell them the story of God and Jesus.  Teach some of the basic songs I learned growing up.  Tell them they are loved and church is a safe place.  Show them that God and Christ will always care for them.  Some weeks it can be the most missional thing I do.  It has been interesting for me to wrap my head around figuring out how to teach a third grader who God is – I don’t remember learning “who is God” - that fact was as basic to my being as “who are my parents”.  So I talk, they listen.  We sing and dance.  The theology of “Jesus Loves Me” and “This Little Light” and “The Bible is a Special Book” probably teach more than I do.  But we have fun.  No one cares that I sing off key, or sometimes forget the motions.  Together we learn about grace when the music leaders have to work together.  I am indebted to our new organist who helped me find some new songs to teach, and teachers who are willing to sing the Butterfly Song for 4 weeks in a row. 

Last week I passed a class in the hall on their way to snack.  One of the little boys stopped me and asked about my left hand – the one that only has 2 fingers.  “That’s how God made me special.  Just like God made you special.”  He looked at me and said “and God loves us both, right?  Can we have chapel today?”  That’s why today I counted out 747 rocks, one at a time.  Because we had chapel and they are special and they need to know.  God loves us.

This is the sermon from October 2, 2011, as preached at FPC in Cartersville.

 

(Image from PC(USA) )

Isaiah 25:1-9

 

Praise for Deliverance from Oppression

 

25O Lord, you are my God;
   I will exalt you, I will praise your name;
for you have done wonderful things,
   plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
² For you have made the city a heap,
   the fortified city a ruin;
the palace of aliens is a city no more,
   it will never be rebuilt.
³ Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
   cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
⁴ For you have been a refuge to the poor,
   a refuge to the needy in their distress,
   a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat.
When the blast of the ruthless was like a winter rainstorm,
⁵   the noise of aliens like heat in a dry place,
you subdued the heat with the shade of clouds;
   the song of the ruthless was stilled.

 
⁶ On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
   a feast of rich food, a feast of well-matured wines,
   of rich food filled with marrow, of well-matured wines strained clear.
⁷ And he will destroy on this mountain
   the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
   the sheet that is spread over all nations;
⁸ he will swallow up death for ever.
Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,
   and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
   for the Lord has spoken.
⁹ It will be said on that day,
   Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
   This is the Lord for whom we have waited;
   let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

“A Feast of Rich Food”

 

            How did you celebrate the last major milestone event in your life, or the life of a family member or friend?  Chances are, as you remember the event, there was food of some kind.  Good food – food you don’t usually eat, food that is bad for your diet and waistline.  Food that drips and oozes or was crisply fried.  Food and drink that stays in your mind as a part of the day.  When we attend weddings, food is an integral part of the celebration – even the simplest of receptions usually have something to eat, and cake – really good cake!  Birthday parties have cake and meals – often the meal at the birthday party is the choice of the Birthday Girl or Boy.  Couples often celebrate anniversaries by going out to dinner.  When we graduate, there are parties and celebrations with yummy eats.  Milestone birthdays as we age often include a special meal; when we die, that event is also marked with food.  Friends and neighbors bring meals to the house, there is often food after the service – -even simple snacks show the hospitality and care of a church family for the deceased.  From the casseroles dropped off at the door when we are born, to the casseroles eaten by our families after we die, our lives and celebrations are marked by meals of rich food.

 

            So often these meals are eaten in community.  We mark the passages in our lives with our friends and loved ones.  In these meals we make memories.  In these meals we find comfort.  We find familiarity.  Often the best part of some of these meals is the anticipation – -the excitement, the planning, the desire for a time to see folks and dine together.  The anticipation can be just as exciting as the event.  In our reading from Isaiah, we hear about anticipation of such a meal.   The 24^th chapter of Isaiah, ending just before today’s passage picks up, does not end well.  The last verses contain predictions of terror and trembling for the whole earth.  The earth will be torn asunder and be violently shaken (24:20), and it will fall and not rise again.  Isaiah and his people were experiencing chaos and turmoil that may feel similar to what we may feel in our lives today – with an “uncertain economy,” wars in other countries, and all the other events that can cause us to feel like we are trembling right along with the people of Judah.  In fact, the 24^th-27^th chapters of Isaiah are called the “little apocalypse” because of their description of “a sense of crisis in the world giving rise to a belief that the present world is so evil that it must soon come to an end, to be replaced by a new and glorified cosmos where only the righteous will live.”[1]  The people were living in the fear of punishment for having broken God’s covenant.  And in the midst of this fear, is a word of hope.  In our lesson for today, Isaiah boldly proclaims that there is hope, and there will be comfort.  Not only for those who heard Isaiah then, but also for us as we look to see God at work today.

 

The passage begins with an affirmation:  “O Lord, you are my God.  I will exalt you, I will praise your name; for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure.”  In the midst of the distress comes the affirmation that the Lord is our God.  Isaiah makes the choice to claim God in the midst of despair, and to proclaim the faithfulness of God; to confess that God is real and worthy of praise – even in the sorrow and confusion the people experience.  There is something to be said for that – for the first reaction in hard times to be “God is here, God is present, and God is my God,” rather than rejecting God.  When we can affirm God in the midst of whatever life throws at us, we can begin to see our way out. 

 

After we proclaim God, we remember God.  How many of our meals and celebrations revolve around story-telling?  How many times have you heard the story told by your aunt about the time that she and your father got lost at the fair, or got in trouble for not weeding the garden?

 

 The story my mom and her siblings tell is about the milk delivery.  My grandparents lived in Portland, Oregon with their three children – -my mom and her 2 brothers.  When I asked her to fill in the details of the story for me for today, we had the best time laughing over it.  It is one I have heard many times before.  So this was back when milk was delivered to the house every day.  The milk order was large and complicated in a house with three growing children, my oldest Uncle was a teenager and drank a lot of milk, the youngest uncle had to drink goats’ milk, because he was allergic to cow’s milk for much of his childhood, and so the daily order was often large and complicated. Every night, they would leave the empty bottles and the order out on the porch.  In the early morning hours, the Alpenrose Dairy would deliver the various quarts of milk my Grandmother had ordered the night before – sometimes she would order chocolate as a special treat.  Well, one night, my oldest uncle changed the order and got up early to bring in the milk without her knowing.  It was not until hours later that my grandmother opened the refrigerator to make breakfast and discovered 5 quarts of chocolate milk – which was not what she had ordered at all!   

 

 

 

We tell stories that make us laugh, and also tell stories where we remember the hard times, and what brought us through them.  Seeing where God is today begins by remembering where God has been in the past.  We remember the times God has been faithful, even when we did not see it, and draw on those experiences to move forward.  In our communion prayer, at our common meal, we remember how God has always been faithful to God’s people, and we trust that God will be faithful still.  In our Great Prayer of Thanksgiving, as it is called, we remember the work of God throughout time and in our world.  We hear, and the Israelites heard then, that God has been acting- -God has provided shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat.  They remember this, as we remember it.  They remember the promises God made through the book of Isaiah for lions to lie down with lambs, for God to do a new and different thing, for God to go with us through the waters, and we know that God will continue to keep God’s covenant with us.

 

 No matter how scattered they might become, the people of God will know salvation.  The consolation offered in our reading for today is for all the nations, past present and future, north, south, east and west.  The banquet Isaiah describes is full of rich food that satisfies, and wine that quenches the thirst.  This meal is made from the rich marrow of the bones that gives food a deep flavor and wine that has been strained of it’s impurities. Those at this feast eat the best food provided by God as a tangible reminder of God’s promises to us, as a way to taste and see that the Lord is good.  This is a banquet for everyone, celebrating the eventual end of death, despair and pain when the Lord hosts the eternal feast for the people. 

 

From memories of God’s action in the past, come thanksgiving for what God continues to do for us.  We give thanks to God for the refuge and shelter given to the poor.  We gave thanks to God for the ways God has ensured the poor will be cared for.  We give thanks for the ways in which God cares for our community, as we recognize the call of God to us to continue to care for those in our community.  We see God in the midst of chaos and tragedy and give thanks for that presence. 

 

When 5 of us went to Tuscaloosa this summer, we had no idea what to expect.  The town had been torn apart by the tornadoes of April 27^th.  Not the whole city, but swaths and paths of it.  On one corner was a building that had been unscathed, and on the other was an empty lot that used to be a business.  You may remember when the roof of our Hobby Lobby crashed in after severe flooding last year.  The Hobby Lobby we drove by in Tuscaloosa was a shell.  The sign lights were blown out, the front walls are gone.  It looked ghostly almost, certainly abandoned.  And this was a place where clean-up had begun – there were full dumpsters in the parking lot and debris in piles ready to be taken away. I had never seen such devastation first-hand, and it was overwhelming. 

 

In the midst of this tragedy, God was present. A community agency that operated similarly to our Community Resource Office became the hub of distributing food and supplies. Volunteers run this center 6 days a week.  Six weeks after the disaster, volunteers were still coming from near and far to help.  Everyone had a story, and so many of the stories we heard praised God that they had been spared, or that it was not worse for them.  We saw a church that had been completely demolished all that remained was the parking lot.  On their now-empty lot, they had set up an RV/Food truck and were continuing to feed the people in their neighborhood.  God was active in this community, providing refuge, providing help, offering solace, providing a banquet for those who needed to eat.  We knew God was at work in lives of the people of this community, and in those who came from other places to serve stranger they had never even met before.

 

Seeing God at work in other places and offering thanks for what God has done helps each of us see God at work in other places in the world.  On this World Communion Sunday, we remember our brothers and sisters in Christ the world over, who dine with us today.  God is not American, God is the God of all people, all over the world.  Do you remember all the excitement surrounding the new millennium when we changed the calendars from 1999 to 2000?  News channels began showing places around the world as it was midnight in each place.  I believe they started on a small island away from Australia, and then moved to the continent of Australia and followed cities and countries all the way to the International Dateline.  Midnight in Sydney, midnight in Japan, China, Russia, Africa, Europe, South America – all the way around the world people celebrated the milestone with parties and celebrations.  It allowed us to see how the world was doing the same thing together – watching time move forward, and waiting to see if this was the end of the world or a new beginning.  There will not be news cameras in Christian churches today, our worship service will not be on the news tonight, but for me, this is a chance to imagine the body of Christ at one table, seeing God at work together.  While we were finishing supper and putting little ones to bed last night, a congregation in Australia gathered around the table and took the bread and the cup. As we were sleeping, congregations in Vietnam heard the ancient words, “this is my body broken for you”.  Around the time I woke up this morning, the drums and chants of those in central Africa were beginning.  And as we are sitting down to Sunday Lunch, churches on the West Coast will begin to sing their hymns.  As the sun makes its way around the globe, the body of Christ sits at table today – to share in a meal that is but a foretaste of the meal God has planned for us.

 

In reading the words of Isaiah, we find hope.  In this meal, a heavenly banquet spread out in a sacred place, believers come to meet their God.  And Christ comes to meet us at our table.  At the table, we share a feast rich with memory, with history, with the knowledge that one day we will all be at the heavenly table.  We yearn for the future feast when all will sit at the table of the Lord and eat rich, delectable food and drink together.  God promises this to us.

God’s plans for us extend throughout time, around time, and in time.  The feast when God comes will be grander than any feast we can imagine.  It will have the best food, the best wine, and the best company – -all of God’s people through time and space and around the world.  We will all dine together.  Our meal on this World Communion Sunday is just a hint at what is to come – -the taste of the bread and the juice are reminders that God is at work in the world now and always.  Christ is with us as we dine, even in the midst of chaos.  The table is set with our china and linen, let us go to the banquet.

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[1] New Interpreters Study Bible.  987-988.  Isaiah 24 study notes.

 

This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, September 4th.  It was really well received, and I am grateful for the kind feedback I received from those who heard it, and heard about it.

 

Your Deep Gladness

Isaiah 6:1-8 and Luke 5:1-11

Have you noticed in the last week or so that the mornings are starting to become cooler?  Darkness now falls before 9, and not after.  Some of the leaves are thinking about changing color, and football season is officially underway.  The long, leisurely days of summer are drawing to a close, and we are back into the busyness of fall.  This weekend marks the unofficial end of summer – it is Labor day weekend.  Ironically, this weekend that we think about the labor we do is one marked by rest, play, vacation, travel and gathering with family and friends.  There is no work on the Monday we celebrate the labor we do, but rather a day off to have a break from work.  But, work is what we will be looking at today – work that we all engage in in our everyday lives.  I invite you to explore with me the Reformed theology surrounding our vocation and call,  to consider who calls you, and to what are you called, and how when we allow God to fulfill us, rather than work, we can experience the deep gladness in our souls that comes from serving God.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism is one of the eleven documents in our Book of Confessions.  These creeds, catechisms, declarations and statements were written over the life of the church to affirm what we believe.  The Shorter Catechism begins with this question: “What is the chief end of [man]?”  The answer:  “To love God and enjoy him forever.”  This statement describes our Christian Vocation – a life of joyful service to glorify God.  God calls us to not only our jobs, if we have them, but to our life work and a life of service in all that we do.  John Calvin and Martin Luther – two of the reformers you hear mentioned most often when we think about the Reformation – advanced the belief that God calls every person to a vocation that serves and glorifies God.[1]

The word vocation is from the Latin word vocare and means “to call”.  Inside the church, we hear this language and think of those called to Christian Vocation – to be pastors and elders and deacons and other leaders, or to participate in full time Christian ministry.  Outside the church, “vocation” is equated with a job – what do you do for a living?  But, in the reformed tradition, “vocation” is so much more than what you do every day as a job outside the home, or inside the home caring for it.  If you crack open your Book of Order to chapter 5, vocation for us is laid out in several paragraphs, ending with this statement, “for Christians, work and worship cannot be separated.”  God calls a people to believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and savior – a profession we all make at baptism confirmation, or reaffirmation of faith.  We are called to follow Jesus in obedient discipleship and use the gifts and abilities God has given us to honor and serve God in our personal life, in our households and with our families, in our daily occupations, in our community, nation, and in the world.  We respond to our call from God and our belief in Christ through the ministries of God’s people in and for the world.  God calls us to honor and serve God in all parts of our lives – in our work and in our play, in our thought and in our actions, and in our private lives and public relationships.  We believe that work and worship, life and worship, cannot be separated.[2]  This means our vocation is not our everyday jobs – be they paid or unpaid – but our everyday lives.  God calls every one of us to continually worship God in all that we do.

Our scripture readings for today are 2 of the call stories in the Bible.  When I was in seminary, and in the call process, we heard a lot about call stories.  It was in the air.  You had to tell your call story to your session and presbytery multiple times as part of the ordination process.  We looked at call stories in the Bible for preaching classes, to talk about why we were called, and to what we were called.  We told our call stories to nominating committees, and to church congregations.  And I still have occasions when I tell my call story.  When do you tell yours?  You have one, you know.  God calls each of us – each of us has a call story.  Some are obvious moments when you knew that God was calling you to a certain occupation, to raise children, to work in a specific area or serve in retirement.  Others are quieter and less easily noticed, or unclear and hard to discern.  What we notice when we look at all of the call stories in the Bible is that God did not call people to a certain job.  Nowhere does God say “for your job, you will be a computer programmer.”  Even if computers were around, that would not have been the call.  The call, in all of the instances in the Bible where we see a call is to go and serve God in a unique way using gifts and skills given to us by God.  In our reading from Isaiah for today, we see Isaiah being called by God to serve as a prophet and proclaim God’s word.  Isaiah has a vision in which God is too big to fit into the temple – in fact the hem of God’s robe fills the temple.  God is being attended by seraphs – -creatures that looked like cobras but with six wings.  Isaiah is considered unclean after seeing God – even just the hem of God’s garment, and a hot coal is placed in his mouth to purify him.  Only then did he hear the voice of God ask, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”  Isaiah immediately replies – “Here am I, send me”.  And, at this point in any worship service where this text is used, we all break out into the song Here I am Lord.  It is a great call song, but do we know where we offer to go when we say, “I will go Lord, if you lead me?”  Isaiah didn’t know.  He just knew that this vision had been for him, and it is in the next verse – of the Bible, not the song!, when he hears that he is being called to deliver a hard message to the people of God.  Isaiah’s vocation is that of Prophet – -to serve God by sharing his word, no matter how hard, to people who probably do not want to hear it. 

Isaiah’s call story would probably go into the category of “confusing,” if we organized call stories into categories.  Another interesting call story is ours today from Luke, when Jesus calls Simon to be what we might call a “second career” individual.  Simon’s first job was as a fisherman.  He had probably done this for most of his working life, and given that he had not yet died from starvation, we can safely assume that he did a pretty good job at it.  But one day, Jesus comes along and changes his life.  Jesus calls him to stop fishing, even after showing him how to bring in a better haul, and instead follow him and fish for people.  Simon Peter did not hesitate when Jesus called him to follow, but probably had no idea what was in store.  Simon Peter was not wanted for his job as a fisherman, but was called to a vocation of discipleship and to be, a follower of Christ. 

Last month I was away for a continuing education event.  The Young Clergy Women Project spent 3 days thinking about questions of call and vocation.  What I did not expect was to see God’s call to someone shown as clearly as I did in our shuttle bus driver.  In a 14 passenger van full of clergy women, his certainty that he was doing the work he was supposed to be doing shone through.  The ride was about 8 minutes between our hotel and the Divinity school.  The driver introduced himself jovially as Mike and greeted each of us warmly as we climbed aboard the van.  As we drive the route, Mike told us about himself, while giving a highly spirited tour of the Duke Campus.  As we drove on the west side of campus, we asked Mike about the statue we had passed numerous times – -a lifesize camel with a single hump seeming to listen to a man.  “Oh, the camel statue.  That was put there to remember the professor who thought he discovered single humped camels.  Everyone knew about 2 humped camels, but he thought he was the first to see one with only one hump.  In fact, he was so certain of this fact that he actually tried to name the camel – you know, give it a scientific name.  But when he went to register his new animal, he found that someone else had already named it.  He found out the hard way that just because he had never seen it before did not mean it didn’t exist.  Why that gets a statue, I have no idea.”  We laughed and he continued to visit with us.

It turns out that Mike actually loves being a shuttle driver.  “I love my work.  I get to take strangers to new places, show them my city, and help them have a good time.  I enjoy taking care of the vans, keeping them maintained and worked on.  I’m a mechanic, and so I can be of use here.  I don’t want to be a supervisor and in charge of the people.  I don’t want to have to tell people what to do or deal with the politics or make the schedules.  I want to drive folks and show them something new.  We have a lot of people who stay at our hotel because of how close we are to the medical center.  Families, patients, kids – you name it.  If I can make a bad day a little brighter, then I will.  If I can show them some comic relief, give them something to smile about or a story to tell, then that makes both of our days brighter.  The camel story – the kids love it!  It is a good memory of what can be a bad time for some of them.”  Mike’s words rang in my ears that night when we returned to the hotel and a little boy who had been there since our arrival jumped out of the shuttle van behind us.  He was obviously a patient at the medical center – his T-shirt said so.  As he jumped out of the van, he gave Mike a high five and said “see you tomorrow Mike!”.

Mike probably would not say he was called to be a shuttle bus driver – -he fell into it by accident.  Yet his vocation of sharing hospitality and humor to strangers who are far away from home was a gift to that little boy, and to us on our trip.   Presbyterian minister and author Frederick Buechner is known for much of his writing.  Perhaps one of his most famous quotations comes from his writing about vocation.  Buechner writes, “There are different kinds of voices calling you to all different kinds of work, and the problem is to find out which is the voice of God rather than society, or say, the superego or self-interest.  By and large, a good rule for finding out is this: The kind of work God usually calls you to is the kind of work that (a) you need to do and (b) that the world needs to have done.  If you really get a kick out of your work, you’re presumably meeting requirement (a), but if your work is writing cigarette ads, the chances are you’ve missed requirement (b).  On the other hand, if your work is being a doctor in a leper colony, you’ve probably met requirement (b), but if most of the time you’re bored and depressed by it, the chances are you have not only bypassed (a), but probably aren’t helping your patients either.  Neither the hair shirt nor the soft berth will do.  The place God calls you to is where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”[3]

Mike’s deep gladness – providing hospitality and comfort and transportation to people meets the hunger of the world.  For a traveler to have a conversation beyond the check-in counter, for a child to hear the story of the camel statue on his way to yet another doctor and yet another test.  The hunger for compassion in a hard world.  Some days, your deep gladness may shine through.  Your deep gladness to shape the lives of children meets the needs of the world to have children cared for.  Some days, well, not so much.  When your deep gladness is living your life in the worship of God, then you can’t help but meet the deep hunger of the world.  Not all of us love our jobs, some of us wish we had jobs, but our jobs are not our vocations – God does not call us to jobs, God calls us to worship and service and to a vocation of discipleship.  One of our new officers shared a story with us during officer training, and has given me permission to share it here with you.  He works in the financial industry, and described the day a client came into his office to transact some business.  The business completed, the client began sharing some personal struggles that were happening, and some hard times their family was going through.  Our officer tells us that he had no idea what to say, but that God gave him the words to say what was needed to ease the pain of his client.  I believe in that situation, and in that moment, the call was not to the stock market, but to be there for someone in their time of need and offer a word of comfort.   Reflecting on the encounter, he said: “I think whenever someone speaks from the heart, it’s as if God is taking over. Sometimes you don’t know what to say, and He just fills in the blanks.”

            We often fall into the trap of believing that our work defines us.  It is unavoidable in a society that often follows up the questions of “what is your name” with “what do you do for a living?”  When we fall into the trap of believing that our work defines us, we also fall into the false belief that our work should be what fulfills us.  How many late nights have you spent working on a project because you want the sense of accomplishment of finishing it, or have you mourned not finding the right job, or a job that is good enough?  Those of you who stay at home and have the impossible job of raising children and maintaining the household – do you find your identity there?  These things will not fulfill us.  The title of CEO or Parent of the Year will not make us whole.  God fulfills us.  God provides us with the sense of accomplishment and completion, the knowledge that what we do is important. 

No matter who you are, you are called by God.  You are called to find the place where your deep gladness – what brings you joy meets the hunger of the world.  That may not be easy some days.  It may not produce a paycheck.  However, when we live our lives as a vocation – when we live our whole lives in service and worship of God, it is hard not to find ways where what brings us, and God joy also meets the needs of the world.  Each and every one of you has a vocation. You have a call.  Our work and worship cannot be separated – -our vocation is to love God and glorify him forever.  As we think about going back to “work” on Tuesday, after a time of Sabbath, consider your vocation, your call to discipleship.  How is God using your deep gladness to meet the hunger of the world?  How are you answering the call to a vocation of discipleship?  Amen.

 

Rev. Julie A. Jensen
            September 4, 2011

First Presbyterian Church, Cartersville, GA

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[1] Myers, Marcia Clark.  “What do Presbyterians Believe about Vocation?”  Presbyterians Today, 2007.

[2] BOO (Old form of Government) G-5.6000, as quoted in PC(USA) Resources for Christian Vocation Sunday, written by Elder Michael Kruse.

[3] Beuchner, Frederick.  Beyond Words:  Daily Readings in the ABC’s of Faith.  Harper Collins, 2004.  P. 404.

Denise Manning is one of the church members who went to Tuscaloosa last weekend.  I asked the group to provide some reflections, and sent them some guiding questions for their writing.  Here are Denise’s thougths about our time of service.

Why did you go on this trip?-I was so moved by all the coverage on the television and the devastation.  I just wanted to do anything to help.

How was it different from what you expected?-I was surprised at the clean up that has taken place so far but at the same time surprised at how much is left to do.  I really did not have many expectations.  I think on these type trips you know you may be walking into any situation.

Where did you see God during our time away?-I saw God in so many places while we were there.  One example that I kept going back to was the sun peeking through the clouds each day. I noticed that a number of times while we were there.  This made me think that God is always there even in the bad times when we think we do not see him, he is like the sun peeking through the clouds to give us hope and remind us he is always with us.  I also saw God in the many individuals we met.  From the stories we heard about people helping people they have never met to the many volunteers we met along the way.  It is refreshing to see all the good that does happen in the world that mostly goes unnoticed. The news was filled with the devastation all over the world but not the wonderful things that are happening in Alabama today.

Share one story from someone you met.-The one story would like to share is of the individual who I assisted at the warehouse.  She was looking to replace some of her things.  I was assisting her in trying to find some clothing etc.  She would ask me, does this look good together, what do you think?  Here is a person who has lost everything but trying to make the most out of what she can and really looking to me for assistance.  In truth I had no idea what I was doing but felt I truly am helping this person.  It broke my heart when we could not find some of the items she needed and made me realize once again how lucky we are each day.  Here is she wanting ANYTHING, she did not care of it matched or was used she just needed some items.  Even something little such as socks that no one thinks about.  Just imagine the items they do not have?!  I was helping her load the items she had chosen in her car and I asked her, did you lose everything?  She responded, “yes I lost everything, my trailer is completely gone.”  We cannot imagine what that must feel like to lose ALL of your possessions and your home as well.  She was not bitter though just thankful for everything she was able to find in the warehouse.  It makes me think about how much more I can/should do to help people in need.  It does not take a lot of time just a willing heart. 

How did it feel to see the damage firsthand?  How did that compare with what you expected? For me it was surreal to see the damage firsthand.  Seeing things on the television of course hurts your heart but being there is so vastly different.  On the television you do not see the people helping each other.  You do not hear the stories of what they have lost and how they all pitched in to help each other.  Neighbors who had never met were helping each other.  I do not think there are words to describe how you feel when you are seeing all the damage.  There is just no rhyme or reason.  Five houses may have tremendous damage and then one house right next to them is standing tall with no damage whatsoever.  It just does not make sense.  I took a number of picture but found again when I was sharing them with others they cannot feel what I felt being there and seeing it in person. 

What was the best/worst part of the trip?-The best part of the trip to me was getting to know some people in the church a little better and hearing the stories that people had to tell about assisting each other.  The worst part of the trip  would be the heat. 

How are you different now than you were before?- I would like to think I am a little more understanding and sympathetic to what people may be going through.  It is hard though when you are away from it and get back to the day to day to keep those images fresh. 

What else needs to be done in the area?  How can our church(es) continue to support this community? EVERYTHING.  They need so much help.  I mean we worked for two days and there were a number of volunteers at just that location and we could see there was still so much to be done.  We can donate our time, send giftcards so they can give to people in need.  We can send donations of specific needs etc.

If I had to put a scripture passage to the events of this weekend, it would be 1 Corinthians 12.  I spent Friday evening and all day Saturday as one of 3 site coordinators at the Civic Center for Bartow Give a Kid a Chance.  This program is in its 4th year in Bartow County, and has the goal to provide every child going back to school with basic supplies, new clothes, a backpack, eye exam, hearing screening, haircut and dental screening.  This article explains the program more fully.

It started for me back in January, when I thought I was going to a planning meeting for the Backpack Buddies program, which provides lunches for children on the weekends.  Well, that meeting segued into a meeting for Give a Kid a Chance, and I was hooked.  The Mission and Witness Committee at church sponsored our Christ the Apple Tree program this summer to solicit donations of supplies and funds, and this weekend it all came together.

I took a moment in the midst of the chaos of 700 children being served to just watch the volunteers.  They greeted families and found their forms and tickets.  They passed out supplies and clothes and backpacks.  One saint checked every child who got a haircut (over 250 I think) for head-lice.  One volunteer spent most of the day giving hearing screenings.  Hairdressers cut hair and dentists checked teeth and in the kitchen an army made 400 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to put in lunches.  Everyone had a part to play, and without them, the day would not have been a success.  Had the dentists cut hair or the vision people checked teeth, it would not have worked.  But everyone did their small part and together we changed the start of the school year for these kids.

I found myself overcome with gratitude at the end of the day.  Gratitude to God, who has walked with us every step of the way.  The funding came in the amount we needed to serve the children registered.  I was grateful to those God called to write checks, no matter how small, to purchase the un-donated supplies, all the backpacks and clothes and food.  My gratitude extended to the ways God provided folks to pay for t-shirts and lunch for the volunteers so they could have a positive experience.  God supplied a text message from the grocery store “do you need anything” at the moment we realized we were going to have to make sandwiches since the ones we ordered would not arrive.  And if you did not see God in the faces of the volunteers, children, and families, you were not looking for it.  God was in conversations I has with colleagues, who have me convinced this community can do almost anything (next up — end homelessness – who is in?), and in the tears of a little boy crying because he lost his lunch ticket – his brother gave him his lunch (and we got the brother another one).  The whole time he was crying, he was holding the straps of his backpack, running them through his fingers — like kids do with tags for comfort.

As I continue to reflect today, I am just so thankful that this is my job – -to get to see God at work, and then tell people about it.  To get to bring people out of their comfort zones to get their hands dirty (covered in Peanut butter!) to serve in the name of Christ.  This has been a month of hearing God call me to help our church serve and then following that call and seeing the blessings that come from it.  Each of us has a part to play in the mission of God in the world.  For those of you who played a part, no matter how small, thank you. We could not have done it without every check, sponsorship, volunteer, and task completed.  Thank you for hearing God’s call and answering it.  Thank you for caring for the children of our community.

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These are some of the pictures I took in the Glendale Gardens Area of Tuscaloosa.  I’m having a hard time with uploading the photos to WordPress, so I will have to put the rest on Facebook.  If you click on the images below, you can make them larger.

I ran out of words last night (Friday night) to use to describe what we have seen and done.  Instead I offer you a few pictures.  On the itinerary for today is driving around and looking more closely at the damage, and heading back to the Temporary Services Warehouse to continue sorting and organizing.  Then a trip to TCBY and we will be on the road home!

Series:  A Journey with Jacob
#3 “Jacob’s Family”

We have been spending our summer with Jacob and his family.  Each week Ted and I are telling part of their story, and this week the saga continues.   As so often happens in life, what we think we know inside and out, what is familiar, often has new meanings when looked at again.  Children like to hear their favorite stories over and over, and we too, hear our story of faith over and over.  The life of Jacob is certainly too long to read or tell in one week, even in 4, but it is too good to miss.  Here is what has happened so far …

            Jacob and his brother, Esau were at odds from the start.  When they were born, a red and  hairy Esau emerged first, with Jacob grabbing at his heel.  From the very beginning, Jacob wanted to be first.  As the boys grew, Esau was the outdoorsman – he hunted and brought home game, much to the delight of his father.  Esau was content to be outside with the animals, while Jacob would rather stay at home with Rebekah, his mother.   It was after one of those hunting trips when Esau returned famished when Jacob played what may have been the biggest trick yet on Esau.  Stirring the pot of stew over the fire, Jacob told Esau he could have some, if he gave Jacob his birthright – -the rights to his inheritance.  Esau was as hungry as Jacob was sneaky, and so he agreed.   That may have been the most expensive meal Esau ever ate!  Time passed, and Isaac’s wealth increased.  Esau married, and we read that he and his wives made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah, his parents.  One day, Isaac tells Esau that the time is coming for him to prepare to die, and he wants to pass his blessing along to Esau.  Esau says nothing about the deal he and Jacob made so many years ago, and instead goes hunting to prepare a meal to eat with his father in order to receive the blessing.  Rebekah and Jacob plot, and Jacob uses his culinary skills to prepare a meal.  Rebekah schemes and wraps him in animal skins so he will feel and smell like his brother.  Isaac is fooled, and Jacob receives the blessing – a permanent act that cannot be undone.  Esau is not exactly thrilled with this turn of events, and becomes angry.  He becomes so angry that he threatens to kill Jacob, and Rebekah sends him to live with Laban, their uncle.  Along the way, Jacob stops to spend the night in the middle of nowhere.  Using a rock for a pillow, he falls into a sound sleep and dreams of God.  His dream is one of a ladder and the angels of God ascending and descending to him from heaven.  He hears the voice of God tell him that God will be with him always and bless the families of the earth through him.  Jacob awakes as a man in the midst of a change.  The self-centered trickster stops to give thanks to God, and sets up an altar – the stone anointed with oil – to mark the place.  While his promise to God is an if-then promise – -if God will be with me and provide for me – then the Lord shall be my God – it is a change in how Jacob encounters the world, and God.

            Jacob continues on his journey, arriving at the land of his uncle.  He sees Rachel, his uncle’s daughter,  for the first time, and is smitten.  He shows off for her by moving the heavy stone that covers the well where the animals will drink, and waters her animals for her.  Rachel goes and tells her father of his arrival, and Jacob stayed with Laban for a month.  This brings us to the scripture for today…  we enter mid-story with Genesis 29:15-28 – listen now to the word of the Lord:

Genesis 29:15-28

¹⁵Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” ¹⁶Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. ¹⁷Leah’s eyes were lovely, and Rachel was graceful and beautiful. ¹⁸Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” ¹⁹Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” ²⁰So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her. ²¹Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” ²²So Laban gathered together all the people of the place, and made a feast. ²³But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. ²⁴(Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maid.) ²⁵When morning came, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” ²⁶Laban said, “This is not done in our country—giving the younger before the firstborn. ²⁷Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” ²⁸Jacob did so, and completed her week; then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as a wife. This is the Word of the Lord.

            This is an account of reversals.  To use the cliché it seems every commentary author used when discussing this passage, the trickster has been tricked.  The tables were turned on Jacob, and he was now on the receiving end of what he had dished out to Esau and Isaac.  Jacob tricked Isaac, substituting himself for his brother, and Laban now tricks Jacob, substituting one daughter for another.  Today’s encounter involves daughter, not sons, but the birth order is still of the utmost importance.  Laban tells Jacob he substituted Leah for Rachel because the youngest daughter is not ever given in marriage before the oldest.  Jacob, who had little regard for the law of the firstborn receiving the blessing, now has to abide by the rules that the eldest daughter must be married first.  Jacob, who was used to doing the deceiving sees that he has been deceived when the morning after his wedding, he discovers he has not married the woman he thought he did.

            Given Jacob’s past, we might expect him to try to worm his way out of this situation.  Perhaps he would try to negotiate for Rachel, or try to manipulate the situation to his advantage so he can have what he wants.  After all, that’s what he did before with Isaac and Esau.  This time he had waited and worked seven years for the woman who caught his attention that day at the well.  He had labored and served, not in the position of a family member, but rather as a hired hand for Laban.  Jacob does what we might least expect – he accepts the situation and after the weeklong wedding festivities are complete for him and Leah, he serves Jacob for another seven years in order to marry Rachel.

            There is quite a bit in this passage that is culturally based and seems strange to us today.  While we cringe to think about marrying cousins, which is what Jacob did, in those days, according to Jewish scholars, it was seen as a way of safeguarding “’purity of blood,’ tribal property and the welfare of the daughter”[i].  The fact that Jacob is taking Rachel as a second wife is not considered strange to those who first told the story, though it is a concept that is foreign to us.  Polygamy was an accepted practice during this time.  We do not get to see or hear the story from the perspective of Rachel and Leah.  Unlike Rebekah when she married Isaac, these two women do not have a choice or say in the matter.  They are given to Jacob and must remain with him.  Again, this seems strange and outrageous to us today but was a part of life during the time of Jacob’s life.  These details, set in context, help us to see that some of what we may have thought was outrageous behavior on Jacob’s part – marrying a woman who had no say, marrying multiple wives, and marrying first cousins were all acceptable practices in that time.

            So here we have Jacob, married to Leah and promising to work another seven years for Rachel.  The deal is set, and Jacob continues to work for Laban.  Seven.  More.  Years.  The text tells us that the first seven years went fairly quickly -  verse 20 says, “²⁰So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.”.  What were the next seven like?  At least he and Rachel were together this time, but a lot can happen in seven years. 

            Think back for a moment to the year 2004 – seven years ago.  That was the year Facebook was founded, and the memorial for the second World War was dedicated in Washington DC.  The summer Olympics were held in Athens, – Greece, not GA – and Hurricane Charley killed 27 people in Florida.  That was the year that LOST premiered on television, and the Boston Red Socks won the World Series for the first time since 1918, defeating the curse of the Bambino.  In 2004, Pat Tillman, the Arizona Cardinal Football player who served in Afganistan was killed, and we mourned the death of Ronald Regan.  In movie theaters we were watching the Passion of the Christ, Meet the Fockers, National Treasure, the Incredibles and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azakaban.  Here at FPC, things were different too.  We were in the midst of building the education building. That year the Pre-School met at Heritage Baptist Church, and the After School Program met wherever space could be found, including the session room.  There was no Middle Service on Sunday morning.  How about in your world? The high school seniors that begin their last year this week were entering middle school.  Parents who graduated from college perhaps are now sending their eldest children to school for the first time.  Seven Years ago this summer I was completing my Clinical Pastoral Education unit in Houston Texas – serving as a hospital chaplain and getting ready for my final year of seminary.

            Do the last seven years seem to be “but a few days” to you, or do they seem longer?  Can you imagine giving them in work for the love of your life, only to be told that you had to do it again?  It has been said that the human body replaces all of it’s cells every seven years.  If this is true, then the Jacob who entered into the contract with Laban for Rachel was not the same man who realized he was deceived.  Seven years later, something had changed.  Jacob was indeed different.  He did not try to scheme his way out, but rather agreed to do what he had to do.  Perhaps seven years was long enough for Jacob to transform in his heart as well as in his body.  The dream he had changed him – he opened himself to the work of God, and God was working in Jacob. 

            God was not only working through Jacob to change him, but also through this entire family. As the child of divorced parents, I’m grateful for the story of Jacob and his family – -it makes the most dysfunctional families seem a little bit better.  None of us can say that we are from a perfect family.  Some of our families have issues and conflicts and family dynamics that mirror or echo Jacob’s own.  In this story, parents and siblings operate from a place of competition and deceit.  Jacob marries into a family that is just as dysfunctional – Laban tricks and manipulates Jacob to get what he wants – his eldest daughter, Leah, the one with eyes that were described as “weak” or “lovely” to imply that she was not beautiful was snuck into the marriage with Jacob.  The beautiful Rachel is used as chattel as well, for Laban to accomplish what he wants.  14 years of free labor in exchange for his daughters does not sound like a bad thing to him.  This is not a family many of us would willingly want to be part of. 

            And yet…God is present with this family.  God does not give up on them.  God works with and through all of them – just as the cells in Jacob’s body changed over those seven years, the possibility of how he is in relationships changes as well.  God is at work in this mess of a situation.  The verses immediately following today’s reading speak of this.  Leah, the first daughter married, was hated by Jacob.  Yet she was blessed with the ability to have children with her husband.  Rachel the beautiful is loved by Jacob, and yet for her conception is almost impossible.  Echoes of Rebecca’s anguish can be imagined.  As Leah continues to bear children, one after another, we can imagine how strained the relationship between the two sisters may have become.  Rachel envied her sister, is what we read, but those feelings may have been deeper than that.  God is in this situation – blessing them with children through their maids  – another one of those strange practices that was common for the time.  The children born to Rachel and Leah are the ancestors of the tribes of Israel.  God is keeping God’s promise to Jacob to bring forth the nation of Israel.  From the drama of anger and lies and betrayal and competition found in this family story, God brings forth something good.

            Our scripture reading from Romans pairs beautifully with this story – nothing can separate us from the love of God.  Not even families full of conflict or strife or sibling rivalry.  God is in the middle of them all and at work.  God transformed Jacob, and God can transform us.  If God can work with the family of Jacob to bring forth the nation of Israel, imagine what God can do with our families.  Once again today, we see that God shows up in the most unlikely places with unlikely people doing unlikely things, and keeping God’s promises.  It was with his dream that Jacob allowed himself to be open to the possibility of transformation and change, and we do indeed see him a changed man.  No longer completely self-serving and self-centered.  The Jacob who stole his brother’s blessing would not have worked 14 years to marry the woman he loved.  If God can work with this family and create transformation, then surely God works with us in our own lives and our own families.  There is a prayer practice called the examen.  At the end of each day, we ask the question:  where was God present today, and where was God absent.  When I was a child, we would go around the dinner table and tell the best part of the day, and the worst part of the day.  This is similar.  In lifting up where we saw God at work each day, we remember that God is faithful to us.  How many days when Jacob served for Rachel did he have to wonder where God was?  How many days did he give thanks for seeing her, for having a meal with her, for the love he had with her.  I invite you to try the practice of examen this week and look for the paces you see God at work.  Like Jacob, you may find God where you least expect to, and find you see God at work in the most unlikely places, with the most unlikely families doing unlikely things.  We can indeed give Thanks to God for that.  Amen.

 

 

Rev. Julie A. Jensen

First Presbyterian Church, Cartersville, GA

July 24, 2011

 

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[i] JPS Torah Commentary 203