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Sermon January 26, 2020
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers,
The Church of the Nativity and St. Stephen’s
Third Sunday after the Epiphany: Year A
http://www.lectionarypage.net/YearA_RCL/Epiphany/AEpi3_RCL.html
As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 2Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. Matthew 4:21-22
Please be seated.
Have you made pivotal changes in your life? Did you switch careers or maybe switch employers? Maybe you took a different path at school, taking different courses. Maybe you tried a different sport.
In today’s Gospel, we continue hearing about people who leave the lives they were living to follow Jesus Christ. This is astounding to hear, isn’t it? Jesus’ message must have been so very compelling to cause such a shift in people’s lives.
I’ve been thinking about how this applies to us.
First of all, following Jesus always requires a shift in how we live our lives. And I would suggest that this shift keeps occurring throughout our lives as we grow, change, and deepen our faith. When we hear the message of Jesus to love God, love our neighbor and love ourselves, we, too, find it compelling or at least interesting. We are willing to try to live into that message and to pattern our lives to embody that message. It’s quite a transformation for us and we may make decisions that seem so odd to others around us. We shift how we live our lives.
Secondly, I think living this way requires courage. I have loved listening to Brene’ Brown talk about what I’d call authentic living. Dr. Brown, by the way, is a social work researcher and an Episcopalian. In her book, The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are, she talks about the importance of living with courage, compassion and connection.
Regarding courage, she says:
“The root of the word courage is cor – the Latin word for heart. In one of its earliest forms, the word courage had a very different definition than it does today. Courage originally meant’ To speak one’s mind by telling all one’s heart.’ Over time, this definition has changed, and, today, courage is more synonymous with being heroic. Heroics is important and we certainly need heroes, but I think we’ve lost touch with the idea that speaking honestly and openly about who we are, about what we’re feeling, and about our experiences (good and bad) is the definition of courage. Heroics is often about putting our life on the line. Ordinary courage is about putting our vulnerability on the line. In today’s world, that’s pretty extraordinary”. (p. 12)
There are many stories about Jesus and his disciples. I think we can relate to them. In most of the stories we would say the same thing the disciples say. Like when there are crowds of people to feed and the disciples are honestly and openly at a loss as to how all of these people will be fed.
Even as the disciples claim to know Jesus, it seems like there are plenty of stories about them messing up and somehow missing the full message of a life following Jesus. I know I can relate.
And being vulnerable… speaking honestly and openly about who we are, about what we’re feeling and about our experiences (good and bad) is certainly a challenge. I know I like to act like I have it all together. Shouldn’t the church be a place where we feel safe being vulnerable? We know about love and forgiveness and acceptance. Yet, it’s still hard, isn’t it?
Earlier this week, I learned that a woman who affected my life and taught me about the importance of acceptance and living in the vulnerability Brene Brown talks about, died. Dr. Anne Wilson-Schaef’s life work was encouraging and helping people to live authentic lives. Her books, including daily meditations, as well as the community that formed around her work truly helped me be comfortable living more authentically. I was so blessed to have met her and studied with her.
Thirdly, while following Jesus requires us to live differently, maybe even we could say, to be transformed, we still bring our skills and talents with us. Yes, James and John left the family fishing business, but throughout Jesus’ ministry there are times when the disciples are in boats and fishing. Jesus uses their skills for furthering his ministry.
We have everything we need to follow Jesus. It’s challenging. We know without a doubt our lives will shift and change as we live deeper and deeper into loving God, loving our neighbor and loving ourselves. We need courage, which means speaking our minds by telling all our heart. We need to trust that all God requires is our very selves – all of our skills and talents.
Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. May we have the courage to do likewise.
Amen
Brene Brown: https://brenebrown.com/
Anne Wilson Schaef: https://annewilsonschaef.com/ and https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/nytimes/obituary.aspx?n=anne-wilson-schaef&pid=195156831
