Broadway Christian Church · Columbia, Missouri

The Worship of God · July 18, 2010

Litany of Praise

From Psalm 52

There are those who love evil more than good

and lying more than speaking the truth.

     God uproots anyone,

     including those who put their trust in riches.

We trust in the steadfast love of God forever.

     In the presence of the faithful

     we will proclaim the name of the Lord, for it is good.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

World without end. Amen. Amen.

Pastoral Prayer

Jacob Thorne

Gracious God and Loving God, for the nourishing rain that feeds our souls and our world, we give thanks. We thank you for your eternal and steadfast presence. As we go about our daily activities, remind us that you are always with us, for all too often, we are scrambling, we are searching, always looking for what comes next. Sometimes we are so busy, we forget to praise and worship you. We forget to trust in you completely. So, this morning, we pray that you will help us refocus and reshape our lives. Encourage us to meet you at the deepest place of our hearts, for you know us so intimately, we can hide nothing from you.

In this time of worship, in this time of stillness, we lift our prayers to you. We open our lives to you. We pray that we will go forth more aware of your presence among us, with a deeper understanding of who you are and who we are.

So, hear us now as we say together the prayer your Son taught us…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, the power, and glory, forever. Amen.

New Testament Lesson

Luke 10:38-42

Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”

Message

The One Thing

Jacob Thorne

I have to tell you, it feels good to be back home. Last week, Paulette, Annabelle, and I spent a week with my family on vacation in Estes Park, Colorado. The weather was lovely – never, ever a day above 70 degrees. The mountains were gorgeous. I have to say that Anna Belle was very pleased with herself as I carried her up the mountainside with her cute little feet dangling out of the backpack. I was going up step by step. You know… that child delighted in and noticed everything. Her joy helped me carry her. 

There is nothing like a mountain breeze, especially on days like this in Missouri. This year, though, we decided to do something different. Several weeks ago, we took a test drive to my parents’ house. My parents live about three hours from here. It was abundantly clear, after three hours in the car, even with the help of the video “Aristocats,” Annabelle was not at all enthused, or excited, or even willing to endure the drive to Colorado. As soon as we made it to my parents’ house, we didn’t even have a conversation about it. We got on-line and made plane reservations. 

Now, even with all of the hassles with the baggage, the parking, the scheduling, and the renting of a car – all of that – flying was still the way to go. Annabelle loved her flight, soaring on the wind. 

But, as we were flying in the air at 30,000 feet, I started to get a bit nostalgic. Now, what I am about to say, I say with a little bit of fear and a little bit of hesitation. I know this is Tiger Country. But as we were flying up in the air, a tiny bit of me missed driving across Kansas. Why? Honestly, I missed seeing those great big wind turbines with their enormous propellers just turning in the wind. Those propellers are just so powerful. Each year, as we drive across Kansas, it seems like there are more and more of them. 

When I look at those turbines, I am reminded that in the Old Testament, in the very beginning, God is described as wind, as Ruah. This wind starts from the very beginning. The opening lines of Genesis say, “When God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was just a formless void. Darkness covered the face of the deep. But then a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.” 

The wind of God powers the spirit of our souls. The wind of God provides us with energy – God’s energy. This is the energy that connects, unites, transforms, and translates. The wind of the Spirit brings people and communities together. But how do we harness God’s energy? How does the energy of God translate into the energy of our lives?

When you drive across the prairies of Kansas, and when you look out on the horizon, you can see some turbines spinning so fast it looks like they might just take off. Then other turbines, situated very close by, aren’t turning at all. Some of those turbines are receptive to the wind. Some of them aren’t. They have to be positioned just right to catch the wind. 

In the same way, we are receptive to God’s energy and God’s presence. We must be positioned just right to receive that energy and presence. Some days, I feel full of energy from God. I find myself being full of gratitude, thankful for everything in my life. I want to reach out and share the good news with others. Other days, though, if I am honest, I feel almost as if the wind of God just blows right through me. Does this ever happen to you?

Our text this morning is a story about Mary and Martha. Jesus arrives at the house of Martha, which is a significant fact. In the ancient world, it would have been unheard of for a woman to invite a man into her house. But because she has such an honored guest in her house, Martha works hard to make sure that Jesus has every single thing that he needs. He has a nice, cool beverage to drink. His favorite meal is being prepared. A comfortable bed for sleeping is readied. A tasty dessert to finish the evening is waiting. While she is preparing everything, her sister, Mary, sits at the feet of Jesus, which again would have been unheard of. She listens to the stories of Jesus.

Eventually, as she is getting everything ready, Martha just cannot take it anymore. She puts her hands on her hips, and she points her finger. She says to Jesus, “You need to scold Mary for not helping me in the kitchen!”

Well… What happens next? It is a familiar feeling. We all know this feeling. It’s what happens when somebody calls our name twice. “Staton, Staton!” “Bonnie, Bonnie!” “Martha, Martha, why are you too worried and too distracted by so many things? There is need of only one thing,” says Jesus. “Only one thing.”

What do you think this is? 

Does anybody remember the film City Slickers? Yes, I see a few nods. City Slickers revolves around three men, all old friends from way back, who are now approaching middle age. Each year, these three men would spend their vacation time doing something daring that would be in stark contrast to their everyday, normal, cushy lifestyles. So, the plot of the film centers around their decision to spend two weeks on a cattle drive helping several of the seasoned cowboys move a herd of cattle across the plains. They had this hope that as they are on this cattle drive, they will get more in touch with their primitive selves. The cattle drive, they hope, will teach them something about the deeper lessons in life.

Now, the boss of this cattle crew is Curly. Curly is a tough, old cowboy. In truth, he reminds me of several other old cowboys that I know. He is mean. He chews tobacco. He carries a gun. He doesn’t talk much. And he lacks any sense of humor. He is just the type of person with whom you want to spend your vacation. However, in his own unique ways, he is somewhat of a sage. He offers deep insights into life. In one of the more serious scenes of this comedy, Curly is riding along side one of the city slickers, in this case, Billy Crystal. Eventually, their conversation becomes philosophical. With the backdrop of those gorgeous mountains, and the horses just plodding along, and the sun beating down on the brows of their hats, Billy Crystal turns to Curly and says with a deep longing, “Your life seems to make so much sense to you.”

Curly replies, “Oh, you city folk. You worry a lot. How old are you – 38?”

Billy says, “Thirty-nine.”

Curly continues, “You all come up here about the same age. You spend 50 weeks getting knots in your rope, and then you think that in two weeks, you can come up here and untie all of those knots. None of you get it.”

Then Curly pauses for a minute. He asks, “Do you know what the secret to life is?”

“No. What?”

“One thing. Just one thing,” says Curly. “You stick to that one thing, and everything else don’t mean nothin’.”

“Well, that’s great,” says Billy Crystal’s character, “but what is the one thing?”

Curly looks at him for a minute. He glares at him. He spits his tobacco. Then he says, “Well. That’s what you have to figure out.”

Maybe this morning, in the middle of the summer, you, too, have some knots in your rope that you are trying to figure out. Maybe you are ready to redefine some of your priorities and rhythms in your life, some of your principles, and values, and goals. Or maybe you have already been on a vacation, and you are hoping that you returned strong enough to focus in on the one thing that really matters. But what do you suppose that one thing is?

When we hear the story of Mary and Martha, it is easy to assume that Jesus believes Martha, in all of her busyness, fails to recognize the presence of God. But that is just way too easy of an interpretation, because there is always, whether we like it or not, work that needs to be done. Martha is doing exactly what a host should be doing. She is showering her guest with a love and a whirlwind of hospitality. To be perfectly blunt about it, while Mary, sitting at the feet of Jesus, is a very contemplative gesture, we can’t always be inactive. So again, what is the one thing?

I think the one thing is this: like the wind turbines on the prairies of Kansas that blow so strongly, we have to put ourselves in the right position to be open to the Spirit of God. This morning, I want to suggest three simple ways that make this possible. Think of this as the three blades that turn on the wind turbine.

First, we have to live a life that is full of gratitude. It is that simple. As Mary was sitting of Jesus, she was moved by everything that he had done for her. Gratitude opens the door of the Spirit.

There are some very simple ways to do this. You could go for a hike. You could call someone you love. You could run on the Katy Trail. You could hold a baby. Take a trip. Write a note to someone. Look at pictures. Watch your favorite movie. The more grateful I am, I know the more I feel fully alive. When I feel fully alive, I feel that each day has a purpose. When I feel that each day has a purpose, I am more receptive to God. When I become receptive to God, I become open to God’s Spirit. Being open to God’s Spirit leads to a life of more generosity, and creativity, and willingness.

The second thing is this: live a life that pays attention. The other day, right before we left for our vacation, the weather had a little bit of a cool break in it. So Paulette, Annabelle, and I decided to walk to our small group. When was the last time you walked instead of driving your car? As we walked along, we said “Hello” to our neighbors. We smelled the freshly-cut grass. We watched Annabelle marvel at all of the little things and all of the nothing – stuff that we would just pass by. We talked to each other for 20 minutes. None of that would have happened in that 20-second car ride. Paying attention requires no equipment. In fact, it requires even less. There are no special clothes, no hidden fees, no personal trainers. All you need is your own body willing to be receptive to the many small details that compose this great thing called life.

The writer and priest Barbara Brown Taylor says it like this:

One common problem for people who believe that God has one particular job in mind for them is that this is almost never the job they are presently doing. This means that those who are busiest trying to figure out God’s purpose for their lives are often the least purposeful about the work that they are doing. They can look right through the people that they work with, because those people are not players in the divine plan. They can find ways to do their work without investing much it, because that work is not much part of the divine plan. The mission to read God’s mind becomes a strategy for keeping their minds off their present unhappiness until they become like ghosts going through the motions of the people they once were but no longer wish to be. Surely, that is not what God intends.

Finally, here is the third key – the third practice. Don’t be afraid to say, “No.” This is one of the eight keys here at Broadway – Honor a Sabbath Time. All too often, as illustrated in the story of Mary and Martha, we are always running around trying to fulfill our obligations. We even plan what to plan for our vacations. But take the time to relax. Take the time to undo the knots in your rope, to breathe more deeply, to live more freely.

The theologian Karl Bart once said, “A human being is only free if you can both determine and limit your activity.”

Saying, “No,” I think, is one of the hardest spiritual disciplines there is. We are conditioned. We are trained to think that the more we do, the holier we are. But sometimes, we, too, just need to sit at the feet of Jesus.

The winds of God, the Spirit of God, is blowing in, and around, and through us. We would like to point and direct these winds with our own ambitions, our own controls, our own desires, our own hopes, our own fears, and our own love. But you can’t direct the winds. God has great intentions for each one of us here today. Even though we can’t adjust the wind, we can adjust our positions. So, as you leave worship today, position yourself to feel the wind of God energizing the depths of your soul.

The old Irish blessing always, always hopes for the wind to be at your back. So, perhaps, the places where we feel powered, where we feel propelled, and when we feel lifted by an unseen force are an endorsement or a special blessing that you know you are positioned just right. If you find yourself feeling the opposite, if you find yourself struggling against the wind, pushing against forces that seem too strong to control, then maybe you need to redirect and reposition. So, be free to spin – almost as if you were going to spin out of control – and spin until you catch the Spirit and until you feel it move your soul, your full attention. Then you can yield even to the point of saying, “No.” 

Maybe all we can know is what it feels to be swept up and to be carried through the mountains, through the valleys, and even the neighborhoods of our lives. Find the time to notice that Jesus invites us to sit at his feet and to power us with his Holy Spirit.

Through Christ, we all say together… “Amen.”

Benediction

So now, let us all go with the Spirit of God’s love, serving one another and each other. As we leave today, may the wind of God be at our back. May we position ourselves to catch the Spirit of the loving God. May we leave, knowing that God is with us every step of the way. Through Christ, we say together, Amen.