Crisis Instructions
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For January 21, 2024:
Crisis Instructions
by Chris Keating
Mark 1:14-20
It’s a big secret, but apparently archeologists have discovered an ancient codex which could predate any of the existing sources for the Gospel of Mark. In a SermonSuite.com exclusive, The Immediate Word has translated a portion of the new manuscript, which bears remarkable resemblance to a modern airline passenger safety announcement. Trigger alert: the following translation is best read with your tongue planted firmly in your cheek.
“Grace and peace to you, and welcome aboard Euangelion Airlines Flight #100 with direct service to the Sea of Galilee. As a reminder, we are boarding the aircraft today according to our trademarked “the last shall be first” seating plan. Once on board, please take your seat for our planned “The Time Is Now” on-time departure. My name is Johnny Baptist, and it is my pleasure to serve you today along with Captain Christ, First Officer Peter. Joining me today are flight attendants Andrew and brothers James and John.
“Here at Euangelion Airlines, we take seriously the promise that ‘foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests,’ and carry-on bags have their place in the overhead bins. Your flight crew is here primarily for your safety, so we ask that you pay attention as they demonstrate the safety features of this Mark 1 aircraft. In the unlikely event that we encounter strong turbulence, please check the rear of the plane to see if Captain Christ is taking a nap. Should the cabin air pressure change, the Holy Spirit shall descend like a dove…”
You’re unlikely to hear that preflight announcement the next time you board a plane, though if you did, you might not notice. Airline experts note that nearly no one pays attention to safety announcements, which is particularly concerning following two near-catastrophes in the early weeks of 2024. In both cases — Japan Airlines Flight 516 and Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 — crew members were praised for their effectiveness in guiding passengers to safety. In both cases, safety experts have credited well-trained crew members for their efforts. (It’s worth remembering that five Japanese Coast Guard members aboard the plane that was hit by Flight 516 lost their lives in the accident.)
In a moment of crisis, following the instructions of highly trained crew members made a difference, and may provide a lesson for the church as it encounters the training Jesus provides. His mission is bigger than staffing an airliner, and it certainly is risky work.
Mark’s gospel begins with Jesus announcing a Kairos moment — an understanding of time that could be a crisis and an opportunity. It’s a mission that will change the world, and it all starts as disciples earn their wings.
In the News
Having made your way through seemingly never-ending airport queues for check-in, security, Starbucks, and boarding, it’s tempting to settle into the seat designed for an 80-pound, 5-foot-tall human and fall asleep — bypassing the FAA mandated safety instructions.
Adjusting your ear buds, you’re tempted to think, “I’ve got this. It’s the same spiel every time. Now’s the perfect time for a nap.”
Not so fast, says the head of the nation’s largest flight attendant’s union. Distractions ranging from gate-to-gate wifi to travel fatigue, coupled with reductions in flight attendants, causes passengers to overlook those ubiquitous briefings. “The attention rate during the safety demos is extremely low,” says Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents employees at several large carriers.
Two airline accidents in the first week of 2024 highlight the need to pay attention. On January 2, 367 passengers aboard Japan Airlines flight 516 escaped a fiery crash at Toyko’s Haneda Airport. It’s been called a miracle evacuation, attributed to passengers calmly responding to the crew’s instructions as well as the plane’s technical specifications.
“Even though I heard screams, mostly people were calm and didn’t stand up from their seats but kept sitting and waiting,” said Aruto Iwama, a passenger. “That’s why I think we were able to escape smoothly.”
Just a few days later on January 5, a door plug blew out of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California. The “plug” is actually a panel on the plane’s fuselage that covers an opening where an extra exit can be installed. The plane, a two-month-old Boeing 737 Max 9, had just reached 16,000 feet following takeoff. No one was seriously injured by the incident, though many passengers lost cell phones and other personal items that were not securely fastened.
Following one of the safest years of air travel in 2023, these incidents are reminders of the need to maintain awareness of flight safety protocols. Zeynep Tufekci, a Princeton University sociologist and New York Times contributor, writes that combinations of technology and human preparation have vastly improved the safety of traveling by air. But, she adds, “Much like liberty, these exceptional levels of commercial airline safety require eternal vigilance against the usual foes: greed, negligence, failure to adapt, complacency, revolving doors at regulatory agencies, and so on.”
Tufekci notes that surviving near-catastrophes are reminders of how humanity can pull together in crises — “if we apply our brainpower and resources to it.” She goes on to remind readers of the heroic efforts of Captain Chelsey Sullenberger, which happened 15 years ago on January 15, 2009. Sullenberger was hailed as a hero after his calm, disciplined landing of a disabled US Airways jet in New York’s Hudson River. She notes such are the emergencies for which airplane personnel diligently train. She recalls Sullenberger’s reflections following the emergency landing:
“One way of looking at this might be that, for 42 years, I’ve been making small regular deposits in this bank of experience: education and training,” he told Katie Couric in 2009 “And on January 15, the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal.”
Air travel is expected to break record numbers of both passengers and profits in 2024, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), with an anticipated 4.7 billion persons planning on flying. The miraculous incidents of this month are reminders of opportunities offered by crisis. Like Jesus’ entrance into Galilee, now is the time to pay attention.
In the Scriptures
Jokes aside, the activities associated with Jesus’ on-time arrival in Mark is narrated in two phases. Verses 14-15 offer a compact statement of Jesus’ mission and note that the timing of his take-off is linked to John’s imprisonment or being “handed over.” The following verses (16-20) narrate the immediate effect of Jesus’ pronouncing the reign of God. Warren Carter’s volume on Mark in the Wisdom Commentary Series notes that Mark’s sparse sentences in chapter one place Jesus as the source of good news that is a continuation of the Hebrew scripture’s declaration of God’s triumph over the imperial powers of Babylon and a jab at the Roman empire’s belief in the “good news” of its power. (Warren Carter, Mark, Wisdom Commentary, Vol. 42, 2019, pp 110 ff.)
John’s arrest prompts Jesus’ declaration that a new era has begun. The announcement that “the time (Kairos) is fulfilled. It is a reminder that those who assert God’s primacy over the powers of the world will face strong, and violent opposition. The powers of the empire will not yield without extreme resistance. Secondly, the text upholds the urgency of what Jesus is about. The reign of God is active and present (see Carter), and will be manifest in Jesus’ actions.
To draw on one of Mark’s favorite words, the impact of Jesus’ action is immediate. It is, as the late William Placher wrote a reminder that “what Jesus is beginning is the transformation of this world. That is why those in charge of this world as it was ended up killing him. (William C. Placher, Mark, ed. Amy Plantinga Pauw, Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p. 35.)
The reign of God’s arrival is a true Kairos moment — a crisis and an opportunity. Those called by Jesus are summoned to a life of urgent repentance. (One hopes Mark might have chosen to show a bit of that repentance himself by expanding the listing of those called to include women.) The early disciples are introduced as having been picked without explanation or even preparation. They are not even told where the emergency exits are located — but are instead expected to fulfill their calling by sacrificing their family ties, jobs, and possessions. Like the passengers fleeing the stricken planes, they were instructed to leave it all behind.
The disciples, who rarely seem to understand anything that is happening in Mark’s gospel, are nonetheless essential to Jesus’ mission. They are to find their ultimate life in following him. It is a calling that comes as the result of a crisis, but which also creates a crisis. Their immediate instructions are limited. But the time will come when they will put to use all that he is teaching them.
In the Sermon
I’m wondering if our preaching can try to emulate or reflect the urgency of Jesus’ announcement of the kingdom. The calling of the disciples is not just a matter of recruiting people to serve on a committee. Jesus is not worried about who will make the coffee or what color napkins will be used at the congregational dinner — he is intent on commissioning disciples who announce the reign of God. The arrest of John prompts this sense of urgency, a reminder that current events do indeed influence the proclamation of God’s word.
My sense is that for many of us, preachers and congregants alike, the matter of urgency in our proclamation is limited to making sure the Sunday schedule is not interrupted or that people get home before football begins. Consider the matter of Sunday morning announcements. Unless we’re announcing that there will be no donuts and coffee today, a good number of “urgent” announcements get forgotten sometime after the call to worship. Imagine Jesus speaking to our congregations today, giving us instructions like my son-in-law does as a captain for a major airline. “Siblings in Christ, I’d suggest you put your on pew seatbelts because it is going to be a bumpy ride…”
Another option, building on the idea of the urgency of our proclamation, is to muse on the notion of our callings in Christ as being a form of emergency preparedness training. To be clear, I’m not suggesting discipleship is a matter of preparing for some sort of apocalyptic “rapture” type event. But the urgency of our calling is revealed by what my denomination calls “exhibiting a new way of life” as part of Christ’s body. There is an urgency surrounding the work we are called to do and an expectation our serving will be improved through lifelong training in the ways of God.
The crews of those ill-fated airlines never knew when the time might occur — but when the announcement came, they knew the “time had been fulfilled.” Perhaps despite our discussions about decline or nose-diving vitality, it might be possible for our churches to reclaim their identity as disciples who remain alert and prepared to announce the good news.
Buckle up friends and remember to put on your own oxygen mask first.
* * * * *
SECOND THOUGHTS
Grace Transforms
by Katy Stenta
Jonah 3:1-5, 10;1 Corinthians 7:29-31
It is amazing how grace transforms us in completely unexpected ways. Perhaps this is why Jonah runs away in the first place. Jonah knew that the grace of God would be transformative, so he runs away. And then after experiencing the grace of God in the belly of the whale, he gives what a colleague notes as one of the shortest sermons to the people of Nineveh. He cried out “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” No harangue about the actual sins, no specificities about what should be done, just a simple message. And, by the grace of God, the people believed, and turned back to God.
This all causes Jonah to be angry that the grace of God, which he personally has experienced, changed him irrevocably. So much so that not only is he saved, but so are all the people around him.
In contrast, Paul takes this change by grace a little more stoically. Paul thinks about the changes in the world that are already happening and that are yet to come, knowing that he too will be irrevocably changed by grace. The world has already been touched by Christ. Paul is trying to prepare for grace by saying nothing is going to stay the same. On the one hand, you cannot prepare to be changed in this way. On the other hand, you can know deep in your heart that grace will change you toward the Kingdom of God. Anne Lamont says “I do not understand the mystery of grace — only that it meets us where we are and does not leave us where it found us.”
When one thinks of training for grace, it may be akin to training for a plane crash. Once you have practiced enough grace, you can recognize it at work. In the case of the Alaska Airlines accident, the staff had trained enough for emergencies to successfully bring down the flight. Similarly, the mother of the teen facing the panel automatically reached for him, “I reached over and grabbed his body and pulled him towards me over the armrest.”
Paul advocates instead of running from grace from Jonah, to acknowledge and move through it. So the question remains, where have you seen grace today?
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:
Mark 1:14-20
I Have What You Need
Meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg says, “In the old city section of Jerusalem, there is a wonderful open-stall marketplace. It is a place teeming with life — a deluge of sights and sounds and goods for sale.” Once, as she and friends were walking through the marketplace, one of the merchants called out to me, “I have what you need!” I felt a thrill go through my entire body. “Wow, he has what I need.” I stopped, turned around, and starting walking toward him.”
Something like this happens when Jesus calls Simon, Andrew, John, and James to follow him. He communicates to them that he has what they need.
Sharon Salzberg says that in the marketplace, she thought, “Wait a minute. First of all, I don't need anything, and second, how would he know he has what I need?” The disciples keep going, trusting that Jesus does have what they — and we — need.
* * *
Mark 1:14-20
Unofficial Resume
Therapist and author Ester Perel has a favorite question: “What’s on your unofficial resume?”
She adds, “For years, this has been one of my favorite questions to ask at parties. I’ve been known to hijack a dinner conversation in which people are splitting off into small conversations in favor of unifying the table with a single prompt. I have lots of such prompts but “the unofficial resume” is the one that immediately gets us away from the dreaded “What do you do?”
As Simon, Andrew, James, and John leave their fishing boats, they’re trading work they can understand for a calling that is mysterious, pays even less than fishing, and has no defined job description. As they step away from the shoreline, following Jesus, casting out demons, and feeding large crowds will take their place on the disciples’ unofficial resumes.
* * *
Psalm 62:5-12
Silence
“My soul waits in silence,” the psalmist tells us. Most of have very little silence in our lives, as author Gretch Rubin noticed when she decided to experiment with a weekend of silence. In her book, Life in Five Senses, Rubin says she had started to feel “talked out — as if I’d crossed some natural boundary.” Silence is so rare in our world. She adds, “Over the course of a lifetime, I learned, the average person says about five hundred million words, and each day, both men and women speak about sixteen thousand words. I wondered if I’d exceeded my allotment; my words felt strained and stretched, like jam scraped too thin across a slice of toast. A fellow writer and podcaster told me that she’d had the same experience. “It’s like I have a finite number of words available to me every day,” she said, “and somehow I know when I’ve used them all.”
She decides to spend a weekend in silence in her New York apartment. She explains, “I was surprised by how noisy my silence was. From outside my apartment, I heard sirens, honking trucks, revving motorcycles, barking dogs, and the thudding of music from cars as they passed; from the inside I heard the clanking of our building’s elevator and the clicks, dings, and hum made by various household devices. These sounds didn’t bother me, and I realized that what I sought wasn’t a pure silence but rather a human silence. Research shows that when we’re awake, we spend about a third of our time speaking or listening to others, and it was this noise that I wanted to hush."
She ended up loving the silence, and also feeling that three days was enough. She was happy to hear the door opening, and her family yelling that they were home.
* * *
Psalm 62:5-12
Different Kinds of Silence
The psalmist invites us to consider a time of silence to wait for God. Author Kent Nerburn says that when we wait in silence, as the psalmist counsels, we discover that there are different kinds of silence.
On one morning, he observes, “It is good to listen to the silence that surrounds each day. In the same way that music is made alive by the silence that surrounds the notes, a day comes alive by the silence that surrounds our actions. And the dawn is the time when silence reveals herself most clearly.”
He invites us into a deeper relationship with silence, saying, “We need to pay heed to the many silences in our lives. An empty room is alive with a different silence than a room where someone is hiding. The silence of a happy house echoes less darkly than the silence of a house of brooding anger. The silence of a winter morning is sharper than the silence of a summer dawn. The silence of a mountain pass is larger than the silence of a forest glen…each silence has a character of its own.”
Silence, he says, echoing the psalmist, “Opens our heart to the unseen, and reminds us that the world is larger than the events that fill our days.”
* * *
Psalm 62:5-12
God the Rock
The psalmist proclaims that their life rests on God’s strength: God “alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my deliverance and my honor; my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.”
Pastor Molly Phinney Baskette says the same things in a different way. “We need a solid Someone who can help us feel the ground beneath our feet when fear or anxiety or anger are spinning out of control, a Someone to restore us to sanity, generosity, patience, and peace.” She adds that she learned this about God through her experience of people. [As a child] “I was on my own, but not alone. Angels accompanied me unawares. My Head Start teachers in preschool, the public librarian who let me read the second-grade books in first grade, my middle-school drama teacher, Mr. Casey — they all made safe new worlds for me to escape into when mine was too bleak. I took shelter in grades and achievement, a trusty launchpad to rocket me out of the poverty and chaos that often dogged my early life. But even with angels beside me and a path before me, my emotions careened wildly. Until I turned twenty-eight, I pretty much cried nearly every day of my life. At twenty-eight, the river of tears finally slowed to a seasonal creek. The change came about because, in short, by then I had been loved well by enough Someones that I could become a Someone more frequently for others.”
With God as our rock, we may eventually become small rocks for other people.
* * *
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Low-Dose Friends
Anticipating the coming of Christ, Paul recommends that people of faith hold onto our attachments loosely. In our contemporary context, author Marisa G. Franco recommends a similar strategy for having a variety of friends. In the book Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make — and Keep — Friends, she says, “Not every friend has to be a best friend. Maybe we expect less from them, share less of ourselves, and compartmentalize the friendship to what feels most fulfilling about it.” She adds that sometimes the best way to manage a relationship is to have less of it, and suggests the idea of a “low-dose friend” to “acknowledge that, like medicine, some friends are wonderful at a certain dose, though at high doses, they make us queasy. Distance isn’t always bad for friendship; with certain friends, it can actually save it."
* * * * * *
From team member Tom Willadsen:
Jonah 3:1-5, 10; Mark 1:14-20
Brevity
Friend and colleague Dean Feldmeyer points out in illustrations for these texts that Jonah and Jesus preach very short, but very effective sermons in today’s readings. It has been more than 30 years since anyone has said to me “Good sermon, it just wasn’t long enough.”
Here are two short sermons I one day hope to preach.
Revelation: Acid trip. God wins.
The Parable of the Prodigal Son and His Brother from the Fatted Calf’s Point of View: The screw up’s home; I’m pot roast. (Note, in this case, the title is longer than the sermon.)
* * *
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Unprecedented success
The response to Jonah’s eight-word sermon, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” is unique in scripture. It is the only time God’s wrath was turned aside by a successful repentance. It’s even shorter in Hebrew, only five words!
* * *
Jonah 3:9
Who knows?
It’s unfortunate that today’s lection is not the entire third chapter of Jonah. Verse 9 is really hilarious, if read with a wide-eyed, Yiddish accent: “Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.” It’s as though the King of Nineveh is saying, “C’mon, guys, this repentance thing is our best shot, am I right?”
* * *
Jonah 3:10
God changed God’s mind!
There are not many occasions in scripture where God is recorded as having changed God’s mind. There’s Amos 7:1-6, where the Lord “relented” from sending a plague of locusts and a consuming fire. There’s also Genesis 6:6, in which God was “sorry” that God had made humans and also “grieved.” Questions of whether God has foreordained everything are raised by passages like these, and Jonah 3:10, in which the Lord clearly deviates from the expected “plan.”
* * *
The Sign of Jonah
When it comes to prophetic books, Jonah is clearly a lightweight. The book reads more like a fable, fairy tale, or legend than any work of Hebrew prophesy. And yet, when asked for a sign, the only one Jesus provides is “the sign of the prophet Jonah,” in Matthew 12:38-41 and also Luke 11:29-32. The second chapter of Jonah consists of Jonah’s prayer from the belly of the big fish. There are around a dozen metaphors for death before the resurrection, the fish vomiting Jonah onto the shore. Chapter three is basically a reset of chapter one, with Jonah, this time, doing the bidding of the Lord.
* * * * * *
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
Waiting
Mark 1:14-20
Jesus was called to bring the good news of God’s grace to a people whose primary mode of religious expression was one of waiting. Primarily, they were waiting for the Messiah to come and liberate them.
Jesus confronted their passive waiting with the radical notion that the time for waiting was over.
* * *
Waiting For Godot
Samuel Becket’s play, Waiting for Godot, is often described as a play in which nothing happens, twice.
The ‘action’ of the second act mirrors and reprises what happens in the first: Two tramps, Vladimir and Estragon, pass the time waiting for someone named Godot. Two other men, Lucky and Pozzo, arrive, go through some business that seems meaningless. A boy arrives with a message that Godot will not be coming that day but will arrive tomorrow. Vladimir and Estragon decide to leave but don’t. They decide to hang themselves, but don’t. They sit down to wait for Godot, tomorrow. The end.
Critics and theater goers have debated the meaning of the play since its London debut in 1955 but most agree that whatever the intended meaning, it certainly addresses the pointlessness of waiting for that which is not likely to appear or already has without our recognizing it.
* * *
Waiting For The Messiah
All of Hermie’s life, he was told that on his 18th birthday he would go to the corner of 34th and Main Street where a bus would pick him up and take him to the messiah who would disclose to him life’s meaning and purpose.
So, on his 18th birthday, Hermie went to 34th and Main Street where he waited for the bus.
He waited all day. Then the next day. And after that, another day. The days grew into weeks and the weeks into months. The months turned into years and still, year after year, Hermie waited. Waited for the bus.
Other people began to join Hermie at the corner waiting for the messiah with him. After some time, they had built a serviceable little campground community with a store and a laundry and even some rules about how to behave in a community where everyone was waiting for the same thing.
After some years, the campground grew into a town and then into a city. By the time Hermie and his friends had waited nearly half a century, the city had grown into a country. A country made up of people waiting for the messiah to come and disclose to all of them life’s meaning and purpose.
Then one day a fellow none of them had ever met before came, riding his bicycle down the main street of the capitol city. Every once in a while, he would stop, get off his bicycle and cry out for all to hear: “Everybody listen. I have good news. There is no bus.”
All over the capitol city he went, crying out his message, what he called, his good news. And do you know what all those people did?
They crucified him.
* * *
Waiting To Be Free
The National Registry of Exonerations lists 12 people who have been exonerated after spending 40 years or more in prison.
The most recent was Terry Talley, who was exonerated of four separate cases of sexual assault by DNA evidence and released after 40 years of imprisonment. The Georgia Innocence Project, together with Coweta Judicial Circuit District Attorney Herb Cranford Jr., has been able to secure the exoneration of a 63-year-old man for four separate wrongful convictions for a series of violent sexual assaults in LaGrange, Georgia, in 1981.
Kevin Strickland, who was jailed for more than 40 years for three murders and was released from prison after a judge ruled that he was wrongfully convicted in 1979. An evidentiary hearing ordered by the judge found that virtually all of the evidence used to convict Strickland had been recanted or proven false.
Gilbert DuBoise, who was released from prison in August 2020 and fully exonerated a month later after DNA evidence from the victim’s rape kit excluded him as a suspect, according to the Innocence Project, but not before spending nearly four decades in prison.
In December of 2020 Ronnie Long was found to have been framed by North Carolina police and prosecutors who manufactured evidence and withheld exculpatory evidence from the defense. He was released after spending 44 years in prison for crimes he didn't commit.
* * *
Brevity
Jonah 3:1-5,10; Mark 1:14-20
Observation On Brevity In Scripture and Preaching
Brevity is often valued in scripture.
Mark is the shortest of the synoptic gospels. Jonah, with only four chapters, is one of the most brief prophetic texts of the Hebrew scriptures. In Matthew, Jesus admonishes his listeners no to “keep on babbling like pagans,” in their prayers, “for they think they will be heard because of their many words.” Alternatively, he offers the Lord’s prayer as an example of appropriate brevity in prayer.
In today’s readings we are given what may be the two shortest sermons in the history of preaching. In Jonah 3, the prophet marches into Nineveh and shouts to all who will hear: “In 40 days, Nineveh will be destroyed.” That’s it. Then, he moves on.
In Mark 1, Jesus preaches his freshman sermon: “The time is fulfilled; the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the good news.”
Brief, indeed, yet both of them were highly effective.
* * *
Too Many Notes
The following dialogue from the play/movie Amadeus demonstrates why it is so hard to write with brevity:
EMPEROR: Well, Herr Mozart! A good effort. Decidedly that. An excellent effort! You've shown us something quite new today.
[Mozart bows frantically: he is over-excited.]
MOZART: It is new, it is, isn't it, Sire?
EMPEROR: Yes, indeed.
MOZART: So then you like it? You really like it, Your Majesty?
EMPEROR: Of course I do. It's very good. Of course now and then — just now and then — it gets a touch elaborate.
MOZART: What do you mean, Sire?
EMPEROR: Well, I mean occasionally it seems to have, how shall one say? [he stops in difficulty; turning to Orsini-Rosenberg] How shall one say, Director?
ORSINI-ROSENBERG: Too many notes, Your Majesty?
EMPEROR: Exactly. Very well put. Too many notes.
MOZART: I don't understand. There are just as many notes, Majesty, as are required. Neither more nor less.
EMPEROR: My dear fellow, there are in fact only so many notes the ear can hear in the course of an evening. I think I'm right in saying that, aren't I, Court Composer?
SALIERI: Yes! yes! er, on the whole, yes, Majesty.
MOZART: But this is absurd!
EMPEROR: My dear, young man, don't take it too hard. Your work is ingenious. It's quality work. And there are simply too many notes, that's all. Cut a few and it will be perfect.
MOZART: Which few did you have in mind, Majesty?
EMPEROR: Well. There it is.
* * *
Good Editing Makes For Good Writing
Many award-winning writers will readily admit that the accolades they receive would be just as appropriately directed at their editors. Good editing makes for good writing.
I have, from time to time, taught brief seminars on the topic of “The Preacher as Writer,” teaching pastors how to be better and more effective writers.
One piece of advice I always give them for their inevitable column in the church newsletter, is to write it, then let it sit for 24 hours, then come back to it and edit it. Start by cutting out the first paragraph. 90% of the time, this alone will improve the piece considerably. Pastors, it turns out, are used to speaking before captive audiences of listeners who are willing to allow them time to take a running start at their topic. Readers, on the other hand, aren’t as patient. If you don’t grab them in the first sentence of the first paragraph, you’ve lost them.
Then, just to show them that I’m not alone in my admiration of brevity, I offer them a couple of quotes.
“Brevity is the soul of whit.” William Shakespeare, Hamlet
“I would have made this letter shorter, but I didn’t have time.” Blaise Pascal, The Provincial Letters
“It is my ambition to say in ten sentences what others say in a whole book.” Friedrich Nietzsche
“Like all sweet dreams, it will be brief, but brevity makes sweetness, doesn't it?” Stephen King,
Then, as a final exercise, I give them a text from scripture with the assignment to write a sermon on that text in the form of a haiku.
* * *
Following
Mark 1:14-20
In this passage, Jesus calls Simon, Andrew, James, and John with the words, “Follow me.” Note that he does not ask them to believe him or even believe in him. Simply to follow him. This, according to the gospel writer, Mark, is the essence of what it means to be a Christian — to follow Jesus.
* * *
Ski Where I Ski
Several years ago, I read of a special kind of challenge for advanced skiers, one that involved danger and a great deal of trust.
A group of highly skilled skiers were taken to the top of a mountain by helicopter. The chopper hovered a few feet off the snowcap and the skiers jumped out and into the snow and immediately started down the side of the mountain.
Before they left, however, when they were still on the ground, the leader, an experienced “drop” skier gave them instructions that when they left the helicopter their first job would be to find his tracks and follow them. “I’ve done this scores of times. I know what I’m doing. Just put your skis in my tracks and follow me. You’ll be fine.”
And as long as they followed the master, they were.
* * *
Follow The String
A friend of mine, upon returning from the war in Vietnam, used to tell this story about one aspect of survival:
We would come to a field or rice patty that had been mined by the NVA and we had to get through the minefield as quickly as possible without getting caught out in the open.
The guy with the mine detector would go first, sweeping it back and forth in front of him. When he came to a landmine he’d defuse it, then move on. Another guy would follow him, driving stakes in the ground and wrapping a string around the stake.
When they had made it safely to the other side we just stooped over, grabbed the string, and one at a time, followed it as quickly as we could go, through the minefield, to the other side.
The last guy across would give the string a yank and wind it up to take along with us to the next minefield.
* * *
The Present Form Of This World Is Passing Away
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Paul admonishes the Corinthian Christians to take a detached posture toward the things of this world, the present form of which is passing away.
* * *
Top Ten Risks To Global Stability In 2024
In 1998, Ian Bremmer founded Eurasia Group, the first firm devoted exclusively to helping investors and business decision-makers understand the impact of politics on the risks and opportunities in foreign markets. Ian's idea — to bring political science to the investment community and to corporate decision-makers — launched an industry and positioned Eurasia Group to become the world leader in political risk analysis and consulting.
On January 8, 2024, they published what their research indicates will be the top ten areas of grave concern for 2024.
RISK 1: THE UNITED STATES VS. ITSELF
The 2024 election will test American democracy to a degree the nation hasn’t experienced in 150 years.
Fully one-third of the global population will go to the polls this year, but an unprecedentedly dysfunctional US election will be by far the most consequential for the world's security, stability, and economic outlook. The outcome will affect the fate of 8 billion people, and only 160 million Americans will have a say in it, with the winner to be decided by just tens of thousands of voters in a handful of swing states. The losing side — whether Democrats or Republicans — will consider the outcome illegitimate and be unprepared to accept it. The world's most powerful country faces critical challenges to its core political institutions: Free and fair elections, the peaceful transfer of power, and the checks and balances provided by the separation of powers. The political state of the union … is troubled indeed.
RISK 2: MIDDLE EAST ON THE BRINK
The region is a tinderbox, and the number of players carrying matches makes the risk of escalation exceptionally high.
RISK 3: PARTITIONED UKRAINE
Ukraine will be de facto partitioned this year, an unacceptable outcome for Ukraine and the West that will nevertheless become reality.
RISK 4: UNGOVERNED AI
Breakthroughs in artificial intelligence will move much faster than governance efforts.
RISK 5: AXIS OF ROGUES
Deeper alignment and mutual support between Russia, Iran, and North Korea will pose a growing threat to global stability.
RISK 6: NO CHINA RECOVERY
Any green shoots in the Chinese economy will only raise false hopes of a recovery as economic constraints and political dynamics prevent a durable growth rebound.
RISK 7: THE FIGHT FOR CRITICAL MINERALS
The scramble for critical minerals will heat up as importers and exporters intensify their use of industrial policies and trade restrictions.
RISK 8: NO ROOM FOR ERROR
The global inflation shock that began in 2021 will continue to exert a powerful economic and political drag in 2024.
RISK 9: EL NINO IS BACK
A powerful El Nino climate pattern will bring extreme weather events that cause food insecurity, increase water stress, disrupt logistics, spread disease, and fuel migration and political instability.
RISK 10: RISKY BUSINESS
Companies caught in the crossfire of US culture wars will see their decision-making autonomy limited and their cost of doing business rise.
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From team member Elena Delhagen:
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Have you ever noticed how often the number 40 appears in scripture? Whether it’s 40 days, as is the case in the text from Jonah, or 40 years, this number is continuously associated “with almost each new development in the history of God’s mighty acts, especially of salvation” (Bible Encyclopedia).
40 is the number of days that Jonah promises the people of Nineveh they have before God overthrows the city. It’s also the number of days that
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1 Corinthians 7:29-31
In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul reminds them that the time is short, and God will surely return to them. In verse 31, almost as a spiritual illustration to his point, he states that “the present form of this world is passing away.”
Paul’s observation is true not only on a spiritual level but a physical one as well. An article from The Scientific American notes that Earth has been characterized by constant change since its creation, which data suggests was about four and a half billion years ago. Earth and its atmosphere are continuously altered by both human activity and the climate change emergency our planet is going through. Continents did not come until later, thanks to shifting plate tectonics that raised mountains, affected the ocean floor, and shifted land masses around. The levels of gases in the air changed, too, with the presence of enough oxygen to sustain life becoming present about one to two billion years ago, according to scientists. And finally, there were periods of both relative warmth or coldness on the Earth that changed its form as well.
Change isn’t always a bad thing, but there are some changes that are more destructive. We continue to emit human-made greenhouse gases that raise the temperature of our planet, and the effects are irreversible. NASA notes: “Glaciers and ice sheets are shrinking, river and lake ice is breaking up earlier, plant and animal geographic ranges are shifting, and plants and trees are blooming sooner. Effects that scientists had long predicted would result from global climate change are now occurring, such as sea ice loss, accelerated sea level rise, and longer, more intense heat waves.”
Without change, though, our planet likely would not have been able to sustain life. In Paul’s example, God changes the world, too, making it resemble more and more his kingdom of justice, peace, and love. The present form is passing away, and that provides us Christians with hope.
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Mark 1:14-20
It strikes me that, in response to Jesus’ calling, the disciples portrayed in this passage from Mark choose to follow him immediately. Simon and Andrew leave behind their nets, which had essentially been their bread and butter; after all, a fisherman wouldn’t be successful without nets, now would he? And James and John leave behind their father, an illustration that no matter how important the things of this world are to us, they pale in comparison to the joy of following Christ.
Yet we are not often prone to making such drastic sacrifices and changes in our own lives. It takes a great deal of courage to give up all we know in exchange for something unknown. A wonderful website, Hello Fears, details stories of everyday humans who leave behind what’s familiar and comfortable for new adventures, much as Jesus’ disciples did.
What about us? Are we brave enough to answer the call?
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WORSHIP
by George Reed
Call to Worship
One: For God alone our soul waits in silence, the One in whom we hope.
All: God alone is our rock and our salvation. We shall not be shaken.
One: On God rests our deliverance and our honor.
All: Trust in God at all times and pour out your heart before our God.
One: Power belongs to God and steadfast love belongs to you, O God.
All: For you, O God, repay to all according to their work.
OR
One: Come and hear the good news of God’s grace for all.
All: We are in need of God’s grace in our lives.
One: God’s grace is abundant and freely given to all.
All: We open our hearts to God’s grace for us.
One: God’s grace also calls us to share the good news with others.
All: With God’s help, we will share God’s grace with all.
Hymns and Songs
There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy
UMH: 121
H82: 469/470
PH: 298
GTG: 435
NCH: 23
CH: 73
LBW: 290
ELW: 587/588
W&P: 61
AMEC: 78
STLT 213
God of the Sparrow God of the Whale
UMH: 122
PH: 272
GTG: 22
NCH: 32
CH: 70
ELW: 740
W&P: 29
All My Hope Is Firmly Grounded
UMH: 132
H82: 665
NCH: 408
CH: 88
ELW: 757
Tú Has Venido a la Orilla (Lord, You Have Come to the Lakeshore)
UMH: 344
PH: 377
GTG: 721
CH: 342
W&P: 347
Come, Sinners, to the Gospel Feast
UMH: 339
AMEC: 234
Dear Lord and Father of Mankind
UMH: 358
H82: 652/653
PH: 345
GTG: 169
NCH: 502
CH: 594
LBW: 506
W&P: 470
AMEC: 344
Amazing Grace
UMH: 378
H82: 671
PH: 280
GTG: 649
AAHH: 271/272
NNBH: 161/163
NCH: 547/548
CH: 546
LBW: 448
ELW: 779
W&P: 422
AMEC: 226
STLT 205/206
Renew: 189
Jesus Calls Us
UMH: 398
H82: 549/550
GTG: 720
NNBH: 183
NCH: 171/172
CH: 337
LBW: 494
ELW: 696
W&P: 345
AMEC: 238
I Am Thine, O Lord
UMH: 419
AAHH: 387
NNBH: 202
NCH: 455
CH: 601
W&P: 408
AMEC: 283
O Zion, Haste
UMH: 573
H82: 539
NNBH: 422
CH: 482
LBW: 397
ELW: 668
AMEC: 566
We Are His Hands
CCB: 85
Walk with Me
CCB: 88
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who graciously loves all your creatures:
Give us the grace to know we are loved
and to share your love with all your children;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you graciously bestow your love on all your creatures. Your grace is abundant and freely given. Help us to know that grace is for us and for all so that we may share your love with all your children. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our failure to share the good news with others.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received your grace but we are hesitant to share it with others. We are more interested in what you can do for us than we are for what you desire to do for and through others. We want to keep you and your good news to ourselves. Forgive our selfish ways and help us to allow your grace to grow within us so that we truly act like your children. Amen.
One: God is gracious even when we are selfish. Receive God’s forgiveness and share God’s grace with all.
Prayers of the People
We worship and adore you, O God, because you are the fount of all goodness and grace. Your love is from everlasting to everlasting.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received your grace but we are hesitant to share it with others. We are more interested in what you can do for us than we are for what you desire to do for and through others. We want to keep you and your good news to ourselves. Forgive our selfish ways and help us to allow your grace to grow within us so that we truly act like your children.
We give you thanks for the good news that we have received and for those who shared it with us. We thank you for the faithfulness of those through the ages who have borne witness to your grace and love. We thank you for the opportunities you bring us to share your grace with others.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for the needs of all your children and all your creation. We pray for those who have not heard of your grace and love. We pray for those who have heard but because of the hatred around them they do not know how to believe. We pray for those who work to share your good news day by day.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
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CHILDREN'S SERMON
Doing What's Right Even When We Don’t Want To
by Quantisha Mason-Doll
Jonah 3:1-5; 10
Themes:
This week's Children’s lesson requires some working knowledge of the Australian children’s TV show Bluey streaming on Disney+. If you are able and you are unfamiliar with the show I highly suggest watching a couple of episodes. They are no more than ten minutes long and each episode has a great message for both parents and children.
To start, give a brief overview of the story of Jonah and his foray with the whale. Make it fun and light. Honestly, I feel the whale has been villainized way too long. Jonah was looking for a vacation and the whale provided one.
The story of Jonah and the whale happens because Jonah was called by God to share the good news of the Lord’s light and love with the people of the city Nineveh. But Jonah did not want to do what God asked of him and he felt that God was trying to boss him around.
(This would be a good place to ask the children how they feel about being bossed around. Has it happened to them? How does it make them feel?)
This story is very similar to an episode of Bluey.
(Give a quick summary of the episode Show and Tell.)
Key points and how the mirror they elements of Jonah and the city of Nineveh
Prayer
Loving God we give you thanks.
Help us to know when bossy-ness is a good thing.
Help us to hear your voice.
Guide us so that we can be better people.
Guide us in using our voice
Loving God always be our guiding light.
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The Immediate Word, January 21, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2023 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
- Crisis Instructions by Chris Keating based on Mark 1:14-20.
- Second Thoughts: Grace Transforms by Katy Stenta based on 1 Corinthians 7:29-31, Jonah 3:1-5, 10.
- Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin, Tom Willadsen, Elena Delhagen, Dean Feldmeyer.
- Worship resources by George Reed.
- Children's sermon: Doing What's Right Even When We Don’t Want To by Quantisha Mason-Doll based on Jonah 3:1-5; 10.
Crisis Instructionsby Chris Keating
Mark 1:14-20
It’s a big secret, but apparently archeologists have discovered an ancient codex which could predate any of the existing sources for the Gospel of Mark. In a SermonSuite.com exclusive, The Immediate Word has translated a portion of the new manuscript, which bears remarkable resemblance to a modern airline passenger safety announcement. Trigger alert: the following translation is best read with your tongue planted firmly in your cheek.
“Grace and peace to you, and welcome aboard Euangelion Airlines Flight #100 with direct service to the Sea of Galilee. As a reminder, we are boarding the aircraft today according to our trademarked “the last shall be first” seating plan. Once on board, please take your seat for our planned “The Time Is Now” on-time departure. My name is Johnny Baptist, and it is my pleasure to serve you today along with Captain Christ, First Officer Peter. Joining me today are flight attendants Andrew and brothers James and John.
“Here at Euangelion Airlines, we take seriously the promise that ‘foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests,’ and carry-on bags have their place in the overhead bins. Your flight crew is here primarily for your safety, so we ask that you pay attention as they demonstrate the safety features of this Mark 1 aircraft. In the unlikely event that we encounter strong turbulence, please check the rear of the plane to see if Captain Christ is taking a nap. Should the cabin air pressure change, the Holy Spirit shall descend like a dove…”
You’re unlikely to hear that preflight announcement the next time you board a plane, though if you did, you might not notice. Airline experts note that nearly no one pays attention to safety announcements, which is particularly concerning following two near-catastrophes in the early weeks of 2024. In both cases — Japan Airlines Flight 516 and Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 — crew members were praised for their effectiveness in guiding passengers to safety. In both cases, safety experts have credited well-trained crew members for their efforts. (It’s worth remembering that five Japanese Coast Guard members aboard the plane that was hit by Flight 516 lost their lives in the accident.)
In a moment of crisis, following the instructions of highly trained crew members made a difference, and may provide a lesson for the church as it encounters the training Jesus provides. His mission is bigger than staffing an airliner, and it certainly is risky work.
Mark’s gospel begins with Jesus announcing a Kairos moment — an understanding of time that could be a crisis and an opportunity. It’s a mission that will change the world, and it all starts as disciples earn their wings.
In the News
Having made your way through seemingly never-ending airport queues for check-in, security, Starbucks, and boarding, it’s tempting to settle into the seat designed for an 80-pound, 5-foot-tall human and fall asleep — bypassing the FAA mandated safety instructions.
Adjusting your ear buds, you’re tempted to think, “I’ve got this. It’s the same spiel every time. Now’s the perfect time for a nap.”
Not so fast, says the head of the nation’s largest flight attendant’s union. Distractions ranging from gate-to-gate wifi to travel fatigue, coupled with reductions in flight attendants, causes passengers to overlook those ubiquitous briefings. “The attention rate during the safety demos is extremely low,” says Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents employees at several large carriers.
Two airline accidents in the first week of 2024 highlight the need to pay attention. On January 2, 367 passengers aboard Japan Airlines flight 516 escaped a fiery crash at Toyko’s Haneda Airport. It’s been called a miracle evacuation, attributed to passengers calmly responding to the crew’s instructions as well as the plane’s technical specifications.
“Even though I heard screams, mostly people were calm and didn’t stand up from their seats but kept sitting and waiting,” said Aruto Iwama, a passenger. “That’s why I think we were able to escape smoothly.”
Just a few days later on January 5, a door plug blew out of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California. The “plug” is actually a panel on the plane’s fuselage that covers an opening where an extra exit can be installed. The plane, a two-month-old Boeing 737 Max 9, had just reached 16,000 feet following takeoff. No one was seriously injured by the incident, though many passengers lost cell phones and other personal items that were not securely fastened.
Following one of the safest years of air travel in 2023, these incidents are reminders of the need to maintain awareness of flight safety protocols. Zeynep Tufekci, a Princeton University sociologist and New York Times contributor, writes that combinations of technology and human preparation have vastly improved the safety of traveling by air. But, she adds, “Much like liberty, these exceptional levels of commercial airline safety require eternal vigilance against the usual foes: greed, negligence, failure to adapt, complacency, revolving doors at regulatory agencies, and so on.”
Tufekci notes that surviving near-catastrophes are reminders of how humanity can pull together in crises — “if we apply our brainpower and resources to it.” She goes on to remind readers of the heroic efforts of Captain Chelsey Sullenberger, which happened 15 years ago on January 15, 2009. Sullenberger was hailed as a hero after his calm, disciplined landing of a disabled US Airways jet in New York’s Hudson River. She notes such are the emergencies for which airplane personnel diligently train. She recalls Sullenberger’s reflections following the emergency landing:
“One way of looking at this might be that, for 42 years, I’ve been making small regular deposits in this bank of experience: education and training,” he told Katie Couric in 2009 “And on January 15, the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal.”
Air travel is expected to break record numbers of both passengers and profits in 2024, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), with an anticipated 4.7 billion persons planning on flying. The miraculous incidents of this month are reminders of opportunities offered by crisis. Like Jesus’ entrance into Galilee, now is the time to pay attention.
In the Scriptures
Jokes aside, the activities associated with Jesus’ on-time arrival in Mark is narrated in two phases. Verses 14-15 offer a compact statement of Jesus’ mission and note that the timing of his take-off is linked to John’s imprisonment or being “handed over.” The following verses (16-20) narrate the immediate effect of Jesus’ pronouncing the reign of God. Warren Carter’s volume on Mark in the Wisdom Commentary Series notes that Mark’s sparse sentences in chapter one place Jesus as the source of good news that is a continuation of the Hebrew scripture’s declaration of God’s triumph over the imperial powers of Babylon and a jab at the Roman empire’s belief in the “good news” of its power. (Warren Carter, Mark, Wisdom Commentary, Vol. 42, 2019, pp 110 ff.)
John’s arrest prompts Jesus’ declaration that a new era has begun. The announcement that “the time (Kairos) is fulfilled. It is a reminder that those who assert God’s primacy over the powers of the world will face strong, and violent opposition. The powers of the empire will not yield without extreme resistance. Secondly, the text upholds the urgency of what Jesus is about. The reign of God is active and present (see Carter), and will be manifest in Jesus’ actions.
To draw on one of Mark’s favorite words, the impact of Jesus’ action is immediate. It is, as the late William Placher wrote a reminder that “what Jesus is beginning is the transformation of this world. That is why those in charge of this world as it was ended up killing him. (William C. Placher, Mark, ed. Amy Plantinga Pauw, Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p. 35.)
The reign of God’s arrival is a true Kairos moment — a crisis and an opportunity. Those called by Jesus are summoned to a life of urgent repentance. (One hopes Mark might have chosen to show a bit of that repentance himself by expanding the listing of those called to include women.) The early disciples are introduced as having been picked without explanation or even preparation. They are not even told where the emergency exits are located — but are instead expected to fulfill their calling by sacrificing their family ties, jobs, and possessions. Like the passengers fleeing the stricken planes, they were instructed to leave it all behind.
The disciples, who rarely seem to understand anything that is happening in Mark’s gospel, are nonetheless essential to Jesus’ mission. They are to find their ultimate life in following him. It is a calling that comes as the result of a crisis, but which also creates a crisis. Their immediate instructions are limited. But the time will come when they will put to use all that he is teaching them.
In the Sermon
I’m wondering if our preaching can try to emulate or reflect the urgency of Jesus’ announcement of the kingdom. The calling of the disciples is not just a matter of recruiting people to serve on a committee. Jesus is not worried about who will make the coffee or what color napkins will be used at the congregational dinner — he is intent on commissioning disciples who announce the reign of God. The arrest of John prompts this sense of urgency, a reminder that current events do indeed influence the proclamation of God’s word.
My sense is that for many of us, preachers and congregants alike, the matter of urgency in our proclamation is limited to making sure the Sunday schedule is not interrupted or that people get home before football begins. Consider the matter of Sunday morning announcements. Unless we’re announcing that there will be no donuts and coffee today, a good number of “urgent” announcements get forgotten sometime after the call to worship. Imagine Jesus speaking to our congregations today, giving us instructions like my son-in-law does as a captain for a major airline. “Siblings in Christ, I’d suggest you put your on pew seatbelts because it is going to be a bumpy ride…”
Another option, building on the idea of the urgency of our proclamation, is to muse on the notion of our callings in Christ as being a form of emergency preparedness training. To be clear, I’m not suggesting discipleship is a matter of preparing for some sort of apocalyptic “rapture” type event. But the urgency of our calling is revealed by what my denomination calls “exhibiting a new way of life” as part of Christ’s body. There is an urgency surrounding the work we are called to do and an expectation our serving will be improved through lifelong training in the ways of God.
The crews of those ill-fated airlines never knew when the time might occur — but when the announcement came, they knew the “time had been fulfilled.” Perhaps despite our discussions about decline or nose-diving vitality, it might be possible for our churches to reclaim their identity as disciples who remain alert and prepared to announce the good news.
Buckle up friends and remember to put on your own oxygen mask first.
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SECOND THOUGHTSGrace Transforms
by Katy Stenta
Jonah 3:1-5, 10;1 Corinthians 7:29-31
It is amazing how grace transforms us in completely unexpected ways. Perhaps this is why Jonah runs away in the first place. Jonah knew that the grace of God would be transformative, so he runs away. And then after experiencing the grace of God in the belly of the whale, he gives what a colleague notes as one of the shortest sermons to the people of Nineveh. He cried out “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” No harangue about the actual sins, no specificities about what should be done, just a simple message. And, by the grace of God, the people believed, and turned back to God.
This all causes Jonah to be angry that the grace of God, which he personally has experienced, changed him irrevocably. So much so that not only is he saved, but so are all the people around him.
In contrast, Paul takes this change by grace a little more stoically. Paul thinks about the changes in the world that are already happening and that are yet to come, knowing that he too will be irrevocably changed by grace. The world has already been touched by Christ. Paul is trying to prepare for grace by saying nothing is going to stay the same. On the one hand, you cannot prepare to be changed in this way. On the other hand, you can know deep in your heart that grace will change you toward the Kingdom of God. Anne Lamont says “I do not understand the mystery of grace — only that it meets us where we are and does not leave us where it found us.”
When one thinks of training for grace, it may be akin to training for a plane crash. Once you have practiced enough grace, you can recognize it at work. In the case of the Alaska Airlines accident, the staff had trained enough for emergencies to successfully bring down the flight. Similarly, the mother of the teen facing the panel automatically reached for him, “I reached over and grabbed his body and pulled him towards me over the armrest.”
Paul advocates instead of running from grace from Jonah, to acknowledge and move through it. So the question remains, where have you seen grace today?
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:Mark 1:14-20
I Have What You Need
Meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg says, “In the old city section of Jerusalem, there is a wonderful open-stall marketplace. It is a place teeming with life — a deluge of sights and sounds and goods for sale.” Once, as she and friends were walking through the marketplace, one of the merchants called out to me, “I have what you need!” I felt a thrill go through my entire body. “Wow, he has what I need.” I stopped, turned around, and starting walking toward him.”
Something like this happens when Jesus calls Simon, Andrew, John, and James to follow him. He communicates to them that he has what they need.
Sharon Salzberg says that in the marketplace, she thought, “Wait a minute. First of all, I don't need anything, and second, how would he know he has what I need?” The disciples keep going, trusting that Jesus does have what they — and we — need.
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Mark 1:14-20
Unofficial Resume
Therapist and author Ester Perel has a favorite question: “What’s on your unofficial resume?”
She adds, “For years, this has been one of my favorite questions to ask at parties. I’ve been known to hijack a dinner conversation in which people are splitting off into small conversations in favor of unifying the table with a single prompt. I have lots of such prompts but “the unofficial resume” is the one that immediately gets us away from the dreaded “What do you do?”
As Simon, Andrew, James, and John leave their fishing boats, they’re trading work they can understand for a calling that is mysterious, pays even less than fishing, and has no defined job description. As they step away from the shoreline, following Jesus, casting out demons, and feeding large crowds will take their place on the disciples’ unofficial resumes.
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Psalm 62:5-12
Silence
“My soul waits in silence,” the psalmist tells us. Most of have very little silence in our lives, as author Gretch Rubin noticed when she decided to experiment with a weekend of silence. In her book, Life in Five Senses, Rubin says she had started to feel “talked out — as if I’d crossed some natural boundary.” Silence is so rare in our world. She adds, “Over the course of a lifetime, I learned, the average person says about five hundred million words, and each day, both men and women speak about sixteen thousand words. I wondered if I’d exceeded my allotment; my words felt strained and stretched, like jam scraped too thin across a slice of toast. A fellow writer and podcaster told me that she’d had the same experience. “It’s like I have a finite number of words available to me every day,” she said, “and somehow I know when I’ve used them all.”
She decides to spend a weekend in silence in her New York apartment. She explains, “I was surprised by how noisy my silence was. From outside my apartment, I heard sirens, honking trucks, revving motorcycles, barking dogs, and the thudding of music from cars as they passed; from the inside I heard the clanking of our building’s elevator and the clicks, dings, and hum made by various household devices. These sounds didn’t bother me, and I realized that what I sought wasn’t a pure silence but rather a human silence. Research shows that when we’re awake, we spend about a third of our time speaking or listening to others, and it was this noise that I wanted to hush."
She ended up loving the silence, and also feeling that three days was enough. She was happy to hear the door opening, and her family yelling that they were home.
* * *
Psalm 62:5-12
Different Kinds of Silence
The psalmist invites us to consider a time of silence to wait for God. Author Kent Nerburn says that when we wait in silence, as the psalmist counsels, we discover that there are different kinds of silence.
On one morning, he observes, “It is good to listen to the silence that surrounds each day. In the same way that music is made alive by the silence that surrounds the notes, a day comes alive by the silence that surrounds our actions. And the dawn is the time when silence reveals herself most clearly.”
He invites us into a deeper relationship with silence, saying, “We need to pay heed to the many silences in our lives. An empty room is alive with a different silence than a room where someone is hiding. The silence of a happy house echoes less darkly than the silence of a house of brooding anger. The silence of a winter morning is sharper than the silence of a summer dawn. The silence of a mountain pass is larger than the silence of a forest glen…each silence has a character of its own.”
Silence, he says, echoing the psalmist, “Opens our heart to the unseen, and reminds us that the world is larger than the events that fill our days.”
* * *
Psalm 62:5-12
God the Rock
The psalmist proclaims that their life rests on God’s strength: God “alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my deliverance and my honor; my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.”
Pastor Molly Phinney Baskette says the same things in a different way. “We need a solid Someone who can help us feel the ground beneath our feet when fear or anxiety or anger are spinning out of control, a Someone to restore us to sanity, generosity, patience, and peace.” She adds that she learned this about God through her experience of people. [As a child] “I was on my own, but not alone. Angels accompanied me unawares. My Head Start teachers in preschool, the public librarian who let me read the second-grade books in first grade, my middle-school drama teacher, Mr. Casey — they all made safe new worlds for me to escape into when mine was too bleak. I took shelter in grades and achievement, a trusty launchpad to rocket me out of the poverty and chaos that often dogged my early life. But even with angels beside me and a path before me, my emotions careened wildly. Until I turned twenty-eight, I pretty much cried nearly every day of my life. At twenty-eight, the river of tears finally slowed to a seasonal creek. The change came about because, in short, by then I had been loved well by enough Someones that I could become a Someone more frequently for others.”
With God as our rock, we may eventually become small rocks for other people.
* * *
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Low-Dose Friends
Anticipating the coming of Christ, Paul recommends that people of faith hold onto our attachments loosely. In our contemporary context, author Marisa G. Franco recommends a similar strategy for having a variety of friends. In the book Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make — and Keep — Friends, she says, “Not every friend has to be a best friend. Maybe we expect less from them, share less of ourselves, and compartmentalize the friendship to what feels most fulfilling about it.” She adds that sometimes the best way to manage a relationship is to have less of it, and suggests the idea of a “low-dose friend” to “acknowledge that, like medicine, some friends are wonderful at a certain dose, though at high doses, they make us queasy. Distance isn’t always bad for friendship; with certain friends, it can actually save it."
* * * * * *
From team member Tom Willadsen:Jonah 3:1-5, 10; Mark 1:14-20
Brevity
Friend and colleague Dean Feldmeyer points out in illustrations for these texts that Jonah and Jesus preach very short, but very effective sermons in today’s readings. It has been more than 30 years since anyone has said to me “Good sermon, it just wasn’t long enough.”
Here are two short sermons I one day hope to preach.
Revelation: Acid trip. God wins.
The Parable of the Prodigal Son and His Brother from the Fatted Calf’s Point of View: The screw up’s home; I’m pot roast. (Note, in this case, the title is longer than the sermon.)
* * *
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Unprecedented success
The response to Jonah’s eight-word sermon, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” is unique in scripture. It is the only time God’s wrath was turned aside by a successful repentance. It’s even shorter in Hebrew, only five words!
* * *
Jonah 3:9
Who knows?
It’s unfortunate that today’s lection is not the entire third chapter of Jonah. Verse 9 is really hilarious, if read with a wide-eyed, Yiddish accent: “Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.” It’s as though the King of Nineveh is saying, “C’mon, guys, this repentance thing is our best shot, am I right?”
* * *
Jonah 3:10
God changed God’s mind!
There are not many occasions in scripture where God is recorded as having changed God’s mind. There’s Amos 7:1-6, where the Lord “relented” from sending a plague of locusts and a consuming fire. There’s also Genesis 6:6, in which God was “sorry” that God had made humans and also “grieved.” Questions of whether God has foreordained everything are raised by passages like these, and Jonah 3:10, in which the Lord clearly deviates from the expected “plan.”
* * *
The Sign of Jonah
When it comes to prophetic books, Jonah is clearly a lightweight. The book reads more like a fable, fairy tale, or legend than any work of Hebrew prophesy. And yet, when asked for a sign, the only one Jesus provides is “the sign of the prophet Jonah,” in Matthew 12:38-41 and also Luke 11:29-32. The second chapter of Jonah consists of Jonah’s prayer from the belly of the big fish. There are around a dozen metaphors for death before the resurrection, the fish vomiting Jonah onto the shore. Chapter three is basically a reset of chapter one, with Jonah, this time, doing the bidding of the Lord.
* * * * * *
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:Waiting
Mark 1:14-20
Jesus was called to bring the good news of God’s grace to a people whose primary mode of religious expression was one of waiting. Primarily, they were waiting for the Messiah to come and liberate them.
Jesus confronted their passive waiting with the radical notion that the time for waiting was over.
* * *
Waiting For Godot
Samuel Becket’s play, Waiting for Godot, is often described as a play in which nothing happens, twice.
The ‘action’ of the second act mirrors and reprises what happens in the first: Two tramps, Vladimir and Estragon, pass the time waiting for someone named Godot. Two other men, Lucky and Pozzo, arrive, go through some business that seems meaningless. A boy arrives with a message that Godot will not be coming that day but will arrive tomorrow. Vladimir and Estragon decide to leave but don’t. They decide to hang themselves, but don’t. They sit down to wait for Godot, tomorrow. The end.
Critics and theater goers have debated the meaning of the play since its London debut in 1955 but most agree that whatever the intended meaning, it certainly addresses the pointlessness of waiting for that which is not likely to appear or already has without our recognizing it.
* * *
Waiting For The Messiah
All of Hermie’s life, he was told that on his 18th birthday he would go to the corner of 34th and Main Street where a bus would pick him up and take him to the messiah who would disclose to him life’s meaning and purpose.
So, on his 18th birthday, Hermie went to 34th and Main Street where he waited for the bus.
He waited all day. Then the next day. And after that, another day. The days grew into weeks and the weeks into months. The months turned into years and still, year after year, Hermie waited. Waited for the bus.
Other people began to join Hermie at the corner waiting for the messiah with him. After some time, they had built a serviceable little campground community with a store and a laundry and even some rules about how to behave in a community where everyone was waiting for the same thing.
After some years, the campground grew into a town and then into a city. By the time Hermie and his friends had waited nearly half a century, the city had grown into a country. A country made up of people waiting for the messiah to come and disclose to all of them life’s meaning and purpose.
Then one day a fellow none of them had ever met before came, riding his bicycle down the main street of the capitol city. Every once in a while, he would stop, get off his bicycle and cry out for all to hear: “Everybody listen. I have good news. There is no bus.”
All over the capitol city he went, crying out his message, what he called, his good news. And do you know what all those people did?
They crucified him.
* * *
Waiting To Be Free
The National Registry of Exonerations lists 12 people who have been exonerated after spending 40 years or more in prison.
The most recent was Terry Talley, who was exonerated of four separate cases of sexual assault by DNA evidence and released after 40 years of imprisonment. The Georgia Innocence Project, together with Coweta Judicial Circuit District Attorney Herb Cranford Jr., has been able to secure the exoneration of a 63-year-old man for four separate wrongful convictions for a series of violent sexual assaults in LaGrange, Georgia, in 1981.
Kevin Strickland, who was jailed for more than 40 years for three murders and was released from prison after a judge ruled that he was wrongfully convicted in 1979. An evidentiary hearing ordered by the judge found that virtually all of the evidence used to convict Strickland had been recanted or proven false.
Gilbert DuBoise, who was released from prison in August 2020 and fully exonerated a month later after DNA evidence from the victim’s rape kit excluded him as a suspect, according to the Innocence Project, but not before spending nearly four decades in prison.
In December of 2020 Ronnie Long was found to have been framed by North Carolina police and prosecutors who manufactured evidence and withheld exculpatory evidence from the defense. He was released after spending 44 years in prison for crimes he didn't commit.
* * *
Brevity
Jonah 3:1-5,10; Mark 1:14-20
Observation On Brevity In Scripture and Preaching
Brevity is often valued in scripture.
Mark is the shortest of the synoptic gospels. Jonah, with only four chapters, is one of the most brief prophetic texts of the Hebrew scriptures. In Matthew, Jesus admonishes his listeners no to “keep on babbling like pagans,” in their prayers, “for they think they will be heard because of their many words.” Alternatively, he offers the Lord’s prayer as an example of appropriate brevity in prayer.
In today’s readings we are given what may be the two shortest sermons in the history of preaching. In Jonah 3, the prophet marches into Nineveh and shouts to all who will hear: “In 40 days, Nineveh will be destroyed.” That’s it. Then, he moves on.
In Mark 1, Jesus preaches his freshman sermon: “The time is fulfilled; the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the good news.”
Brief, indeed, yet both of them were highly effective.
* * *
Too Many Notes
The following dialogue from the play/movie Amadeus demonstrates why it is so hard to write with brevity:
EMPEROR: Well, Herr Mozart! A good effort. Decidedly that. An excellent effort! You've shown us something quite new today.
[Mozart bows frantically: he is over-excited.]
MOZART: It is new, it is, isn't it, Sire?
EMPEROR: Yes, indeed.
MOZART: So then you like it? You really like it, Your Majesty?
EMPEROR: Of course I do. It's very good. Of course now and then — just now and then — it gets a touch elaborate.
MOZART: What do you mean, Sire?
EMPEROR: Well, I mean occasionally it seems to have, how shall one say? [he stops in difficulty; turning to Orsini-Rosenberg] How shall one say, Director?
ORSINI-ROSENBERG: Too many notes, Your Majesty?
EMPEROR: Exactly. Very well put. Too many notes.
MOZART: I don't understand. There are just as many notes, Majesty, as are required. Neither more nor less.
EMPEROR: My dear fellow, there are in fact only so many notes the ear can hear in the course of an evening. I think I'm right in saying that, aren't I, Court Composer?
SALIERI: Yes! yes! er, on the whole, yes, Majesty.
MOZART: But this is absurd!
EMPEROR: My dear, young man, don't take it too hard. Your work is ingenious. It's quality work. And there are simply too many notes, that's all. Cut a few and it will be perfect.
MOZART: Which few did you have in mind, Majesty?
EMPEROR: Well. There it is.
* * *
Good Editing Makes For Good Writing
Many award-winning writers will readily admit that the accolades they receive would be just as appropriately directed at their editors. Good editing makes for good writing.
I have, from time to time, taught brief seminars on the topic of “The Preacher as Writer,” teaching pastors how to be better and more effective writers.
One piece of advice I always give them for their inevitable column in the church newsletter, is to write it, then let it sit for 24 hours, then come back to it and edit it. Start by cutting out the first paragraph. 90% of the time, this alone will improve the piece considerably. Pastors, it turns out, are used to speaking before captive audiences of listeners who are willing to allow them time to take a running start at their topic. Readers, on the other hand, aren’t as patient. If you don’t grab them in the first sentence of the first paragraph, you’ve lost them.
Then, just to show them that I’m not alone in my admiration of brevity, I offer them a couple of quotes.
“Brevity is the soul of whit.” William Shakespeare, Hamlet
“I would have made this letter shorter, but I didn’t have time.” Blaise Pascal, The Provincial Letters
“It is my ambition to say in ten sentences what others say in a whole book.” Friedrich Nietzsche
“Like all sweet dreams, it will be brief, but brevity makes sweetness, doesn't it?” Stephen King,
Then, as a final exercise, I give them a text from scripture with the assignment to write a sermon on that text in the form of a haiku.
* * *
Following
Mark 1:14-20
In this passage, Jesus calls Simon, Andrew, James, and John with the words, “Follow me.” Note that he does not ask them to believe him or even believe in him. Simply to follow him. This, according to the gospel writer, Mark, is the essence of what it means to be a Christian — to follow Jesus.
* * *
Ski Where I Ski
Several years ago, I read of a special kind of challenge for advanced skiers, one that involved danger and a great deal of trust.
A group of highly skilled skiers were taken to the top of a mountain by helicopter. The chopper hovered a few feet off the snowcap and the skiers jumped out and into the snow and immediately started down the side of the mountain.
Before they left, however, when they were still on the ground, the leader, an experienced “drop” skier gave them instructions that when they left the helicopter their first job would be to find his tracks and follow them. “I’ve done this scores of times. I know what I’m doing. Just put your skis in my tracks and follow me. You’ll be fine.”
And as long as they followed the master, they were.
* * *
Follow The String
A friend of mine, upon returning from the war in Vietnam, used to tell this story about one aspect of survival:
We would come to a field or rice patty that had been mined by the NVA and we had to get through the minefield as quickly as possible without getting caught out in the open.
The guy with the mine detector would go first, sweeping it back and forth in front of him. When he came to a landmine he’d defuse it, then move on. Another guy would follow him, driving stakes in the ground and wrapping a string around the stake.
When they had made it safely to the other side we just stooped over, grabbed the string, and one at a time, followed it as quickly as we could go, through the minefield, to the other side.
The last guy across would give the string a yank and wind it up to take along with us to the next minefield.
* * *
The Present Form Of This World Is Passing Away
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Paul admonishes the Corinthian Christians to take a detached posture toward the things of this world, the present form of which is passing away.
* * *
Top Ten Risks To Global Stability In 2024
In 1998, Ian Bremmer founded Eurasia Group, the first firm devoted exclusively to helping investors and business decision-makers understand the impact of politics on the risks and opportunities in foreign markets. Ian's idea — to bring political science to the investment community and to corporate decision-makers — launched an industry and positioned Eurasia Group to become the world leader in political risk analysis and consulting.
On January 8, 2024, they published what their research indicates will be the top ten areas of grave concern for 2024.
RISK 1: THE UNITED STATES VS. ITSELF
The 2024 election will test American democracy to a degree the nation hasn’t experienced in 150 years.
Fully one-third of the global population will go to the polls this year, but an unprecedentedly dysfunctional US election will be by far the most consequential for the world's security, stability, and economic outlook. The outcome will affect the fate of 8 billion people, and only 160 million Americans will have a say in it, with the winner to be decided by just tens of thousands of voters in a handful of swing states. The losing side — whether Democrats or Republicans — will consider the outcome illegitimate and be unprepared to accept it. The world's most powerful country faces critical challenges to its core political institutions: Free and fair elections, the peaceful transfer of power, and the checks and balances provided by the separation of powers. The political state of the union … is troubled indeed.
RISK 2: MIDDLE EAST ON THE BRINK
The region is a tinderbox, and the number of players carrying matches makes the risk of escalation exceptionally high.
RISK 3: PARTITIONED UKRAINE
Ukraine will be de facto partitioned this year, an unacceptable outcome for Ukraine and the West that will nevertheless become reality.
RISK 4: UNGOVERNED AI
Breakthroughs in artificial intelligence will move much faster than governance efforts.
RISK 5: AXIS OF ROGUES
Deeper alignment and mutual support between Russia, Iran, and North Korea will pose a growing threat to global stability.
RISK 6: NO CHINA RECOVERY
Any green shoots in the Chinese economy will only raise false hopes of a recovery as economic constraints and political dynamics prevent a durable growth rebound.
RISK 7: THE FIGHT FOR CRITICAL MINERALS
The scramble for critical minerals will heat up as importers and exporters intensify their use of industrial policies and trade restrictions.
RISK 8: NO ROOM FOR ERROR
The global inflation shock that began in 2021 will continue to exert a powerful economic and political drag in 2024.
RISK 9: EL NINO IS BACK
A powerful El Nino climate pattern will bring extreme weather events that cause food insecurity, increase water stress, disrupt logistics, spread disease, and fuel migration and political instability.
RISK 10: RISKY BUSINESS
Companies caught in the crossfire of US culture wars will see their decision-making autonomy limited and their cost of doing business rise.
* * * * * *
From team member Elena Delhagen:Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Have you ever noticed how often the number 40 appears in scripture? Whether it’s 40 days, as is the case in the text from Jonah, or 40 years, this number is continuously associated “with almost each new development in the history of God’s mighty acts, especially of salvation” (Bible Encyclopedia).
40 is the number of days that Jonah promises the people of Nineveh they have before God overthrows the city. It’s also the number of days that
- Moses was with God on the mountain
- the Israelite scouts explored the Promised Land before the people passed over into it
- Elijah is sustained in the desert by the meal brought to him by an angel
- Goliath daily challenged the Israelites to a fight
- the prophet Ezekiel bears the punishment of Israel
- both Saul and David reigned as king
- the number of years Israel was to be in exile
- the land of Israel was granted peace and rest, according to Judges 3:11
* * *
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul reminds them that the time is short, and God will surely return to them. In verse 31, almost as a spiritual illustration to his point, he states that “the present form of this world is passing away.”
Paul’s observation is true not only on a spiritual level but a physical one as well. An article from The Scientific American notes that Earth has been characterized by constant change since its creation, which data suggests was about four and a half billion years ago. Earth and its atmosphere are continuously altered by both human activity and the climate change emergency our planet is going through. Continents did not come until later, thanks to shifting plate tectonics that raised mountains, affected the ocean floor, and shifted land masses around. The levels of gases in the air changed, too, with the presence of enough oxygen to sustain life becoming present about one to two billion years ago, according to scientists. And finally, there were periods of both relative warmth or coldness on the Earth that changed its form as well.
Change isn’t always a bad thing, but there are some changes that are more destructive. We continue to emit human-made greenhouse gases that raise the temperature of our planet, and the effects are irreversible. NASA notes: “Glaciers and ice sheets are shrinking, river and lake ice is breaking up earlier, plant and animal geographic ranges are shifting, and plants and trees are blooming sooner. Effects that scientists had long predicted would result from global climate change are now occurring, such as sea ice loss, accelerated sea level rise, and longer, more intense heat waves.”
Without change, though, our planet likely would not have been able to sustain life. In Paul’s example, God changes the world, too, making it resemble more and more his kingdom of justice, peace, and love. The present form is passing away, and that provides us Christians with hope.
* * *
Mark 1:14-20
It strikes me that, in response to Jesus’ calling, the disciples portrayed in this passage from Mark choose to follow him immediately. Simon and Andrew leave behind their nets, which had essentially been their bread and butter; after all, a fisherman wouldn’t be successful without nets, now would he? And James and John leave behind their father, an illustration that no matter how important the things of this world are to us, they pale in comparison to the joy of following Christ.
Yet we are not often prone to making such drastic sacrifices and changes in our own lives. It takes a great deal of courage to give up all we know in exchange for something unknown. A wonderful website, Hello Fears, details stories of everyday humans who leave behind what’s familiar and comfortable for new adventures, much as Jesus’ disciples did.
What about us? Are we brave enough to answer the call?
* * * * * *
WORSHIPby George Reed
Call to Worship
One: For God alone our soul waits in silence, the One in whom we hope.
All: God alone is our rock and our salvation. We shall not be shaken.
One: On God rests our deliverance and our honor.
All: Trust in God at all times and pour out your heart before our God.
One: Power belongs to God and steadfast love belongs to you, O God.
All: For you, O God, repay to all according to their work.
OR
One: Come and hear the good news of God’s grace for all.
All: We are in need of God’s grace in our lives.
One: God’s grace is abundant and freely given to all.
All: We open our hearts to God’s grace for us.
One: God’s grace also calls us to share the good news with others.
All: With God’s help, we will share God’s grace with all.
Hymns and Songs
There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy
UMH: 121
H82: 469/470
PH: 298
GTG: 435
NCH: 23
CH: 73
LBW: 290
ELW: 587/588
W&P: 61
AMEC: 78
STLT 213
God of the Sparrow God of the Whale
UMH: 122
PH: 272
GTG: 22
NCH: 32
CH: 70
ELW: 740
W&P: 29
All My Hope Is Firmly Grounded
UMH: 132
H82: 665
NCH: 408
CH: 88
ELW: 757
Tú Has Venido a la Orilla (Lord, You Have Come to the Lakeshore)
UMH: 344
PH: 377
GTG: 721
CH: 342
W&P: 347
Come, Sinners, to the Gospel Feast
UMH: 339
AMEC: 234
Dear Lord and Father of Mankind
UMH: 358
H82: 652/653
PH: 345
GTG: 169
NCH: 502
CH: 594
LBW: 506
W&P: 470
AMEC: 344
Amazing Grace
UMH: 378
H82: 671
PH: 280
GTG: 649
AAHH: 271/272
NNBH: 161/163
NCH: 547/548
CH: 546
LBW: 448
ELW: 779
W&P: 422
AMEC: 226
STLT 205/206
Renew: 189
Jesus Calls Us
UMH: 398
H82: 549/550
GTG: 720
NNBH: 183
NCH: 171/172
CH: 337
LBW: 494
ELW: 696
W&P: 345
AMEC: 238
I Am Thine, O Lord
UMH: 419
AAHH: 387
NNBH: 202
NCH: 455
CH: 601
W&P: 408
AMEC: 283
O Zion, Haste
UMH: 573
H82: 539
NNBH: 422
CH: 482
LBW: 397
ELW: 668
AMEC: 566
We Are His Hands
CCB: 85
Walk with Me
CCB: 88
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who graciously loves all your creatures:
Give us the grace to know we are loved
and to share your love with all your children;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you graciously bestow your love on all your creatures. Your grace is abundant and freely given. Help us to know that grace is for us and for all so that we may share your love with all your children. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our failure to share the good news with others.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received your grace but we are hesitant to share it with others. We are more interested in what you can do for us than we are for what you desire to do for and through others. We want to keep you and your good news to ourselves. Forgive our selfish ways and help us to allow your grace to grow within us so that we truly act like your children. Amen.
One: God is gracious even when we are selfish. Receive God’s forgiveness and share God’s grace with all.
Prayers of the People
We worship and adore you, O God, because you are the fount of all goodness and grace. Your love is from everlasting to everlasting.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received your grace but we are hesitant to share it with others. We are more interested in what you can do for us than we are for what you desire to do for and through others. We want to keep you and your good news to ourselves. Forgive our selfish ways and help us to allow your grace to grow within us so that we truly act like your children.
We give you thanks for the good news that we have received and for those who shared it with us. We thank you for the faithfulness of those through the ages who have borne witness to your grace and love. We thank you for the opportunities you bring us to share your grace with others.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for the needs of all your children and all your creation. We pray for those who have not heard of your grace and love. We pray for those who have heard but because of the hatred around them they do not know how to believe. We pray for those who work to share your good news day by day.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
* * * * * *
CHILDREN'S SERMONDoing What's Right Even When We Don’t Want To
by Quantisha Mason-Doll
Jonah 3:1-5; 10
Themes:
- Doing what right even when we don’t want to
- Understanding the difference between bossing someone around and guiding them with a firm hand
- Feeling singled out
- Second chances and grace
- Try again
This week's Children’s lesson requires some working knowledge of the Australian children’s TV show Bluey streaming on Disney+. If you are able and you are unfamiliar with the show I highly suggest watching a couple of episodes. They are no more than ten minutes long and each episode has a great message for both parents and children.
To start, give a brief overview of the story of Jonah and his foray with the whale. Make it fun and light. Honestly, I feel the whale has been villainized way too long. Jonah was looking for a vacation and the whale provided one.
The story of Jonah and the whale happens because Jonah was called by God to share the good news of the Lord’s light and love with the people of the city Nineveh. But Jonah did not want to do what God asked of him and he felt that God was trying to boss him around.
(This would be a good place to ask the children how they feel about being bossed around. Has it happened to them? How does it make them feel?)
This story is very similar to an episode of Bluey.
(Give a quick summary of the episode Show and Tell.)
Key points and how the mirror they elements of Jonah and the city of Nineveh
- Dad Bandit feels singled out by his children when they claim he is too bossy — he has a hard time showing his children that his commands are for their own good.
- Jonah, still in his “why me” era, spends three days preaching and prophesying in a city that has fallen from grace.
- Both struggled with the doing part of showing.
- Both Bandit and Jonah ignore directions that lead to a teaching moment.
- Bandit ignores directions from their version of Google maps and ends up at a cemetery.
- Jonah ignores God’s call that the people of Nineveh will repent.
- Both get a second chance at trying again and successes when they try again with an open mind.
Prayer
Loving God we give you thanks.
Help us to know when bossy-ness is a good thing.
Help us to hear your voice.
Guide us so that we can be better people.
Guide us in using our voice
Loving God always be our guiding light.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, January 21, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2023 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
