Sermon for the Episcopal Church of St John the Baptist, Capitola,
given by Rev. Stu Fitch, January 28, 2007
The Episcopal Church of Saint John the Baptist welcomes all to worship God and to share
Christ's love in the world. We are a parish family committed to provide liturgy, Bible study, music, counseling, and Christian education for children, youth, and adults, and to equip all our members for life and for service to other
Sermon
Fourth Sunday After Epiphany
It is a mystery and a wonder that God has always known us, even before our birth. It¹s like God knows our spirit, our essence, our isness from before conception. As Jeremiah speaks for God "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you: I appoint you"-----for Jeremiah to be a prophet. But what has God appointed each one of us to do and to Be?
It can take awhile and our need to abide with patience in order to get in touch with our deepest yearnings. I always had an inkling of my appointed place, but it took me going from a business major, to a disbursings officer in the Navy, to two degrees in Journalism and being a journalist, for the fulness of time to come for me to be an ordained priest. And my heart tells me I am in the right place, yet all that came before was part of my daily bread, fitting me for this place for now. But who knows what¹s next? Joseph Campbell wrote: "We must be willing to get rid of the life we¹ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us."
Sometimes the awakening of our call comes from a profound experience, sometimes from the wise remark of a friend, or from a book we have read or a movie we have seen, which says "Yes," in one¹s heart. You feel at home regardless of the ups and downs that may occur. "Yes, this is were I am to Be." That confidence helps us ride the waves of ebb and flow. Jesus experienced that in his rejection in Nazareth , his home town, yet confident in his call, he kept on.
I think all of us have pondered what God wants next of us. The Collect for Purity sums it up "Almighty God. to you all hearts are open, all desires known and from whom no secrets are hid. cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name---"
In my younger years I realize my interpretation of that prayer was "clean up your act." Get aware of those secret sins and desires. "Yes Lord, cleanse me." And that was an important step for my now interpretation which is that God knows the deep and sincere desires and secrets of our yearning to live out our True Self even before we become aware of that yearning. Yes, that is how God sees us---not as miserable sinners standing with hat in hand, but God knows the intentions of our hearts to be our True Selves, our Christed Selves, open and willing to manifest God¹s nature.
Then yes, inspire us God with the Holy Spirit to dare to live out that yearning and that Divine Promise to love God and magnify God¹s holy name by becoming Love as God is Love. We can say with Jesus, "the Father and I are one," hence Love and I are one
For those of us who are pursing the Christian Way, what kind of daughter or son of God do I aspire to Be? In what way can I best make God present Now, here? What part of the vast and mysterious nature of God am I to manifest.? What part of God¹s image? We won¹t be the same, but we are all part of the One--the community of the One Power, the One Presence. Together we have all the gifts and talents needed to be a mirror of God to the world.
Paul reminds us that our journey to this point does need the faith that God is working God¹s will out in us and heading us in the right direction. Hope that the dream still unseen will come to pass when we shall be One with Love. Paul then describes this Love as patient and kind, not envious nor rude, it does not insist on its own way, is not irritable or resentful, rejoices in the Truth, bears all things hopes all things, endures all things and never ends.
Another definition of Love that I find useful is that Love is the power of Being directed toward reuniting. God¹s power in Jesus directed towards us to reunite us to the Truth of our Oness--- within ourselves, with others and all of creation and with God. Reuniting us to the Truth of our Being (our True Selves) as children and heirs of God.
That kind of Love is Agape Love, giving without expecting a return, putting forth, connecting and being connected., all for Love¹s sake. And we can Love in this way, for as God promised Jeremiah, when we feel inadequate in God¹s assigned task, God is with us all the way, giving us the strength, the maturity, and the ability to speak or listen or act , But God will not force us. When we come to know that God is our life, giving us purpose and fullness,.we want to develope a personal, vital, living relationship with God, aware of God¹s presence at all times and trust in that presence.
Brother Lawrence in the Monastary kitchen knew how to practice the presence of God. And Frank Laubach, a more recent follower, has a little book called "The Game with Minutes" which gives us a practice to realize that presence once a minute!! Part of the game is to think of God sitting next to you as you drive, or in the chair across from you---pick out one. If someone else sits in that chair,, think of Jesus or the God-presence (which are the same) encompassing the person. It makes a lot of difference how you relate to that person and is especially helpful if you have a difference of opinion!!! Don¹t walk down the middle of the sidewalk or hallway, leave space for Jesus to walk beside you. Hold the door open a little longer.
Read the newspaper or book you are reading to God. From Junior High School on through college, graduate school and seminary, I studied with Jesus, and if I got stumpted on a question, I¹d say "God we studied this together please go back into the library of my mind and bring forth the information". And God did. God has also helped me find lost items, because God was with me when they were lost. Set an extra place at the dinner table, like we do at Cursillo, and instead of talking to yourself talk to God. Use your imagination to think of other examples. It¹s all a game, and some might consider you daft, but it does help to make you aware of your Oneness with God.
Laubach knew about God¹s Presence. As a missionary in the Philippines he once had to travel alone through headhunter territory to go from one mission station to another. Later, he encountered the Headhunter chief and asked if he remembered that time. The chief did, so Laubach then asked, "Why didn¹t you take me?" And the chief answered "There were too many of you." God and the multitude of saints were there. We never know in our Oneness how God will be there with us.
Many of us are discovering God¹s presence in the silence. No thoughts, no words, just sitting still .. God said "Be still and know that I am God." Just experiencing the Presence. From these times can come an awarenesss of our deep yearnings, and how God is calling us to serve and to Be Now. Mysteriously, to know God is to know ourselves and to know ourselves is to know God. Divinity is the depth dimension of humanity. The Spirit of God within is our divine resource.
Being sure of God¹s will can be tricky. We know of the many misguided souls who do gross things in God¹s name. When we feel we are in touch wlth God¹s direction for our life, it is good to check it out with a trusted friend. What I have often done is to decide, state it and then live with that decision for a period of time. I find I¹ve gotten increasingsly more "yes" or "no." Our lesson from Paul today is a good test. Does our decision match up with the Nature of Love? Deep within is our call, for God has known us from before we were born and God consecrates us and appoints us to find our True Being and rhw cxcommunity through which to serve. In our Oneness, God invites us to give voice and form to God's reign and Love and Presence.
