"This IS your break" Sunday, January 25, 2009

Jonah 3:1-5, 10; Mark 1: 14-20 "Jesus Called the Common Man" – that is what Rick Warren, the writer of The Purpose-Driven Church says. He continues, “Small ministries often make the greatest difference. The most important light in my home is not the large chandelier in our dining room, but the little nightlight that keeps me from stubbing my toe when I get up to use the bathroom at night. It's small, but it's more useful to me than the show-off light (My wife says that my favorite light is the one that comes on when I open the refrigerator!).” *** "Give Jonah a break" The two readings from the Bible give us a sharp contrast in how people respond to God’s calling. Jonah was called by God to be a prophet to the city of Nineveh. Instead of going east to the city, he gets on a boat and goes west, as far away as he can from the call. And then, his epic adventure includes being thrown overboard from a ship and swallowed by a whale and finally thrown up at the very point he started running from his mission. It would be easy to berate Jonah and put him down for his lack of faith or courage, but really, it is more helpful to identify with him for a moment. He was given a mission impossible. Nineveh was one of the greatest cities of its day. It was a city of conquerors, with a strong commercial base, superior technology and a powerful war machine. Jonah was from a strip of wilderness that the rest of the world passed through as a way station to somewhere else – much like Glencoe and Wardsville have become. Jonah had a mission impossible. Jonah may be one of our patron saints. The world conspires to make Jonahs out of all of us. The world beats us down and tells us that you can’t change the big picture, so just fall in line and make the best living that you can for yourself and your family. Our values may tell us we need to head East to Nineveh, but we turn around and walk west and get on the boat with Jonah, because it is just too hard. We spend some of our precious time in the belly of the whale, out of touch with our calling, our sense of meaning and purpose. Several years ago Michael Lerner wrote a book called “The Politics of Meaning.” Lerner said that to often we give up on our deepest held values of compassion, caring and community because they do not seem practical in the real world. Instead, an ethos of selfishness and materialism prevails by default. These are the values that we settle for when our deeper values seem out of reach. Whether we consider ourselves liberal or conservative or apolitical, Protestant Catholic, Jewish or New Age, individualism and materialism are our powerful determinates of our lives. We may not have meaningful work or chances to make a difference, but materialism tells us that we can at least “Do the Dew” and drive a comfortable car. We may not be able to bring about racial reconciliation or even have the kind of relationships we want, but individualism tells us that we can pursue our own happiness and carve out our own little niche for peace of mind. Ironically, these attitudes give us less freedom and power. Selfishness and materialism erode community and make it less possible to live the life we want. It puts us more out of purpose. Crazy, isn’t it – Jonah’s way seems easier at first, but in the end we will get thrown overboard and end up in the belly of the whale. *** In Mark’s Gospel, we read the story of how the first four disciples, Peter, Andrew, James and John, are called by Jesus to be disciples. While it takes three chapters for Jonah to get to Nineveh, in 4 short verses, these fishermen leave their nets, their security , and their families to follow Jesus. Mark merely says, “And immediately, they followed him.” This connecting phrase, “and immediately,” is the most common phrase in Mark’s Gospel, occurring 33 times in only 16 chapters. (By the way, this phrase never occurs in Jonah!) How would we act differently if we knew the potential difference our lives make to others. The immediacy of Mark’s Gospel is contained in the simple message Jesus delivers in Mark 1:14, “The time has come. The Kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” Jesus does not spend a lot of time analyzing the big picture. His program is not very detailed. He is more intent on telling us God’s picture of the world. God is near, God’s power is at work, hear this good news and follow me. “Love your neighbor as yourself. Feed the hungry, house the homeless and you have done it to me. Abide in my love and I will abide in you. You are the light of the world, so let your light shine before all that they may see the glory of God. The reign of God is among you, within you. If you have faith, the mountain shall be moved for you.” *** The calling of James and John and Simon and Andrew and such other callings to leave all and follow function as a protest not against life at home and the social structures to control the status quo. Jesus’ socially disruptive call upset the system not only for those called but also for those left behind. It called for a new way of looking at life, wherever you are. There is a new set of priorities. This means changed values, but it is more than that. It means a new god, or better, a return to the God of compassion and justice. That will make a huge difference wherever we are. *** (Jesus’ First and Last Words to Peter) The very first words of Jesus when he and Peter met at the waters was, "Follow me, and I will make you a fisher of men." His very last words to Peter, again down at the waters of the Sea of Galilee, and after his resurrection, were, "Feed my sheep, Follow me." From beginning to end this is the mission of the Church. *** So, how do we know we are called? How do we know to what we are called? An age-old question to which a wise minister and author has given us an answer worth pondering. Frederick Buechner, in his book, "Wishful Thinking," says it well. He says that a good rule for finding one's vocation is this: Our special mission in our life is usually A. That which we'd love most to do and B. It is work that the world most needs to have done. Buechner says that if we really get a kick out of our work, we have probably met requirement A, but if that work is writing TV deodorant commercials, chances are we haven't met requirement B. If our work is being a doctor in a leper colony, we probably have met requirement B, but if most of the time we are bored and depressed by doctoring, the chances are we have not only bypassed A, we probably aren't helping our patients much, either. Buechner concludes: "The place God calls us to, is the place where our deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." (Article by Brent Porterfield and Brett Blair) (A Job and A Ministry – excerpt written by Michael Powell) - Do you have a job in this church and this community . . . or do you have a ministry? There is a difference! + If you are doing it because no one else will, it's a job. If you're doing it to serve the Lord, it's a ministry. + If you're doing it just well enough to get by, it's a job. If you're doing it to the best of your ability, it's a ministry. + If you'll do it only so long as it doesn't interfere with other activities, it's a job. If you're committed to staying with it even when it means letting go of other things, it's a ministry. + If you quit because no one praised you or thanked you, it was a job. If you stay with it even though no one seems to notice, it's a ministry. + If you do it because someone else said that it needs to be done, it's a job. If you are doing it because you are convinced it needs to be done, it's a ministry. + It's hard to get excited about a job. It's almost impossible not to get excited about a ministry. + If your concern is success, it's a job. If your concern is faithfulness, it's a ministry. + People may say "well done" when you do your job. The Lord will say "well done" when you complete your ministry. + An average church is filled with people doing jobs. A great church is filled with people involved in ministry! + If God calls you to a ministry, for heaven's sake (literally) don't treat it like a job. If you have a job in the church, give it up and find a ministry! God doesn't want us feeling stuck in a job, but excited, fulfilled, and faithful in a specific ministry. May God bless and empower us as disciples of Jesus Christ, called to be in the ministry of this church and community. Amen.