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Sermon February 26, 2023
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, MSW
The Church of the Nativity and St. Stephen’s
The First Sunday in Lent, Year A
https://lectionarypage.net/YearA_RCL/Lent/ALent1_RCL.html
Audio: /documents/Eucharist__Sunday__February_26__2023
Video: https://youtu.be/7MYt0e9yEDA
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Genesis 3:6
It’s been nearly 20 years ago now. I knew I needed to make a change in my career. I started going to courses in organizational development. I was truly led to that work by a series of God-incidences as Darlene Amsler has taught me to say. I enjoyed the training I was participating in with the NTL Institute. It was hands-on and so practical. It was social work that focused on organizations and making them work better for everyone.
There wasn’t much work in organization development in the Harrisburg area, and I connected with a chapter of the Organization development Network in the DC area. I’d drive to their interesting meetings which included education, discussion and networking. I started looking for and applying for jobs in the DC and Baltimore area. I didn’t want to go too far away from my family, which included children, grandchildren and my parents who were still living.
And I got frustrated. It was taking so long. One interview I had was very promising, but I think ultimately the Executive Director couldn’t believe that I wouldn’t want to run things and take her job. I, frankly, was tired of being the head of an organization, but I could not convince her of that.
I remember times just crying out to God, “please let me find a new position.” I remember feeling the frustration and impatience. I had an idea of what things would and should look like and how long it should all take.
Ultimately, what I learned was that I would receive the next step and I needed to take that faithfully and keep open to what might happen or come; that my idea of what things would look like in the end, might not be what ultimately happened.
So, I kept listening to the spirit’s guidance. I applied for jobs. I went to the Organization Development Network meetings. I went to the training with NTL. Finally, in 2006, I found a wonderful job with the National Association of Social Workers in Washington, DC. It wasn’t in Organization Development like I thought it would be, and it was just a wonderful next step.
As I read the piece in Genesis this week, I was captivated by the idea that Adam and Eve were tempted with wisdom. The fruit of the tree that was forbidden by God would make them wise. Why did they need to be wise if God had given them everything they needed for a good life? The wisdom they had was wonderful. It was the wisdom that came from trusting God and obeying God.
Yet, we, like Adam and Eve, find it hard to trust in this God that doesn’t appear to us as a human being. So, we are tempted by anything that will make us wise ourselves or as I see it, we want more certainty in our lives.
Having and knowing the balance of certainty and uncertainty in our lives is a challenge. Yesterday I heard someone talk about square structure and blob structure. Square structure is totally necessary when it comes to this building, for instance. It has particular rules and is inflexible. But blob structure is more fluid and flexible. I’ve called it organic structure sometimes. You plan a little and then see what happens and go from there.
Adam and Eve had rules and structure in the garden, right? They just couldn’t eat from two trees. They were to care for and tend the garden. They were to listen to their creator. Yet, they just couldn’t trust that that would be enough.
Can we learn to live with some uncertainty in our lives, trusting more in God, whom we do not see in human form, but hopefully hear and feel? In my experience, doing so at times can give us more than we can ask or imagine.
A recent example that you may have heard about comes to mind.
Asbury University is a small Christian University in Wilmore, Kentucky, about twenty miles southwest of Lexington. The school has chapel services 3 times each week about mid-morning. On Wednesday, February 8, there was the typical chapel service.
The sermon was about Romans 12:9-21, which when I looked it up is titled Marks of the True Christian. The first verse is “Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good.” It goes on from there with some very specific actions and attitudes. The Rev. Zach Meerkreebs, Envision Leadership Coordinator, Christian and Missionary Alliance from Asbury University was the preacher.
It’s a good sermon and I love this section of Romans. In fact, I knew it by heart at one time and used to say it every day.
Yet, from this typical service that day, came a 2-week time of non-stop praise and worship of God. Yes, two weeks. There was singing and praying and testimonies. People came from all over the country and even different parts of the world once word got out about what was happening there. People wanted to be a part of it. It was streamed online and people could watch, but they still wanted to be there in person.
A pastor I knew from Kentucky took a group from his church there last Sunday afternoon and reported standing in line for over 2 hours and then finally being taken to the second overflow site to watch on large screens. At first, he was a little disappointed, but they soon felt the spirit of God moving in that place too.
There is a lot on social media about this event. Some call it the Asbury Revival. A similar experience happened at Asbury in the 1970s. Others have stayed away from calling it a revival.
There are opinions on all sides about what happened there and what it was all about.
What I love is that the University allowed something to happen that was not in the plans for those days. They trusted in the spirit of God that was moving among the people and put aside their agenda for a short time. And what an experience it was and what a gift it seems to be to so many people.
May we resist the temptation of certainty and put our trust in God.
Amen
Asbury University Chapel Service February 8, 2023: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGvvGbgUmMU
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbury_University
