Asking The Right Questions
Children's sermon
Illustration
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Object:
The questions we ask -- of ourselves, of one another, and even of God -- tend to reveal the underlying attitudes and assumptions we have, and the answers we expect to receive. That's certainly the case in this week's lectionary readings, in which Job demands answers from God about the reasons for his awful predicament, and in which some of the disciples yet again demonstrate their narrow parochial interests. But when we ask the wrong questions, the answers we receive are often beyond our comprehension -- as is the case with Job when God comes out of the whirlwind to offer him a glimpse of his awesome nature, and as is also true for James and John when Jesus tells them that they really don't have a clue about what they're asking for when they request preferential seating in heaven.
In this installment of The Immediate Word, team member Mary Austin wonders if a similar dynamic is also at work in terms of the questions and attitudes Americans have about God, the church, and religion, as revealed by a comprehensive survey released last week by the Pew Forum. For those of us in the church, the headline-worthy takeaways from the survey were disturbing if not surprising, because for the first time 1 in 5 Americans now consider themselves as having "no religion," and Protestants are no longer a majority of Americans. But Mary suggests that if we focus our attention on those declining trends we may be missing the point, and if we spend much of our energy in trying to reverse them, we also might have misplaced priorities. Like James and John, we may be asking the wrong question -- or the right question but without fully grasping what's really important. Jesus sets them straight about how difficult the road ahead will be... and Mary points out that, just as with the disciples, putting our illusions about what constitutes "success" to rest may actually allow us to better get in touch with what Jesus is asking of us.
Team member Leah Lonsbury offers some additional thoughts on the gospel text and its call to service and the hard work of servant leadership. Leah notes that when viewed from this perspective, the numbers are actually irrelevant -- our task is about the day-to-day challenge of reaching out to others and building community. Like James and John, that may not be the reward we hoped was coming... but it may be the only way to actually reach those who have concluded that the church is too focused on rules and tradition.
Asking the Right Questions
by Mary Austin
Mark 10:35-45
Like a young child or a wily friend, the disciples come and ask Jesus: "Will you do us a favor?" Too wise to say an immediate yes, Jesus answers them with a question of his own.
Questions abound in the spiritual life, and the recent Pew Forum survey of attitudes about religion was also filled with questions. The questions asked thousands of Americans about their beliefs, attitudes toward religion and spirituality, and spiritual practices. The survey confirmed that fewer people are connected with a place of worship or even feel that it's important. The change in feelings about religion asks even deeper questions for all of us who do find a home within a denomination or a congregation.
The question Jesus asks, and the questions we all ask, give shape to our faith.
THE WORLD
The Pew Research Center just released their survey of religion in American life and found -- to no one's surprise -- that religious affiliation and connection continue to decline. Fewer people belong to a formal spiritual community or choose to identify themselves as religious. As the survey reports: "In the last five years alone, the unaffiliated have increased from just over 15% to just under 20% of all U.S. adults. Their ranks now include more than 13 million self-described atheists and agnostics (nearly 6% of the U.S. public), as well as nearly 33 million people who say they have no particular religious affiliation (14%)."
People are less connected with religion and less interested in it: "The number of Americans who do not identify with any religion continues to grow at a rapid pace. One fifth of the U.S. public -- and a third of adults under 30 -- are religiously unaffiliated today, the highest percentages ever in Pew Research Center polling." Attendance at religious services is down, and people report that religion is less important to them.
Part of the decline is what the survey calls "generational replacement." Younger people are less likely than older ones to be religious or connected with a church. The survey reports that "young adults today are much more likely to be unaffiliated than previous generations were at a similar stage in their lives."
Yet, people still report being deeply spiritual. The report says that "many of the country's 46 million unaffiliated adults are religious or spiritual in some way. Two thirds of them say they believe in God (68%). More than half say they often feel a deep connection with nature and the earth (58%), while more than a third classify themselves as 'spiritual' but not 'religious' (37%), and one-in-five (21%) say they pray every day. In addition, most religiously unaffiliated Americans think that churches and other religious institutions benefit society by strengthening community bonds and aiding the poor." But they won't be showing up at church any time soon. "With few exceptions, though, the unaffiliated say they are not looking for a religion that would be right for them. Overwhelmingly, they think that religious organizations are too concerned with money and power, too focused on rules, and too involved in politics."
People are seeking meaning and connection -- but not at church.
THE WORD
The disciples should know better by now, but they still ask Jesus, as we all so often do, to give them whatever they want. Their request turns out to be asking to take their places beside him in a glorious future. Jesus asks them a question in turn, wondering if they're really up to the job they're asking for. Matthew's version of the same story has their mother asking the question on their behalf, as if to soften up their greed or their impatience for glory. Mark's gospel is famous for things hidden and secret, and Jesus' purpose is still a mystery to these impetuous followers, as it often is to us too.
As Matt Skinner of Luther Seminary writes: "When Jesus softly chastises the two for their ignorance and speaks about 'the cup' he must drink (see 14:36) and 'the baptism' he must undergo, he reiterates that violence and death await him in Jerusalem.... Mark's gospel emphasizes that such rejection and death are inevitable and required, because of who Jesus is, because of the boundary-breaking character of his ministry..." Being at Jesus' left and right hand is a guarantee of being in places of pain, suffering, and death. In a beautiful and ironic illustration of that, the people at Jesus' left and right hand in his final moments are the two thieves.
This question of "are you able" comes at the heart of who Jesus is. He doesn't shrink from the demands of faith or from sharing those demands with those who are close to him.
CRAFTING THE SERMON
It's no accident that Mark sets all of these conversations between Jesus and his friends -- about suffering, death, and being a servant -- on the way to Jerusalem. The second half of Mark's gospel is their epic journey toward Jerusalem and the cross, and Jesus and his followers are "on the way" as they talk about these hard realities of Christian faith. If we are "on the way" to anything in the life of faith, we have to face the same hard truths.
Jesus illuminates the truth by asking questions, but we often prefer certainty. Much of popular religion has been more about answers than questions. We and our fellow preachers have offered people a gospel of success and prosperity instead of asking the hard questions that Jesus asks. We fail to help people ask and learn to answer their own hard questions: "What gifts do I have by the pure grace of God?" "What is God calling me to do?" "What gives my life meaning and purpose?"
The sermon might also acknowledge that we often ask the wrong questions in our churches. "How did we do it last year?" "Will people be mad if we change this?" And, of course, the thing we always ask: "How can we get more members?" Or more specifically: "How can we reach young families?" Our questions may be as well-meaning, and as wrong, as the ones James and John ask.
The decline of the place of religion in American life is painful to watch from the inside. And yet, in the end I suspect that it will be good for all of us. People don't have to come to church anymore, and church is no longer an automatic part of life. In that space, we have the opportunity to let go of anything that we think will make us popular, palatable, or easy, and ask the kind of questions that Jesus asked. Our mission is not about filling pews or offering plates, but about helping people find a deep connection with God. Part of that is the hard work of dying to ourselves and our illusions and learning to be servants. As Jesus says so clearly and so unpopularly, "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many." The decline of religious life is not the decline of God. It is a chance for all of us to think anew about church and faith and where we're asking the wrong things. It is a chance to let go and to seek a faithful future.
We, as followers of Jesus, know better than anyone that new life comes from death and that dying is the first half of rising.
SECOND THOUGHTS
What's Your Sense (of Service)?
by Leah Lonsbury
Mark 10:35-45
A poll that was released last week by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public life reveals that nearly 20% of Americans now consider themselves "unaffiliated" with a religion. As you can imagine, this has all kinds of people talking.
Jesse Galef, communications director for the Secular Student Alliance, said that the growing number of the unaffiliated should bring about greater political representation for secular interests and spoke about his relief that atheists and agnostics "won't be dismissed or ignored anymore" as a result. (Perhaps Galef didn't read the part of the poll reporting that amongst the unaffiliated, 68% say they believe in God, 37% describe themselves as "spiritual but not religious," and one in five say they pray every day.)
Rachel Zoll of the Associated Press focused on the fact that this is the first time that the number of self-reporting Protestant adults in the U.S. has dipped "with certainty" below 50%. This drop is the emphasis of her article, despite the fact that she begins by saying it has "long been anticipated" and comes at a time when no Protestants sit on the U.S. Supreme Court and the Republican party has its first-ever ticket filled with no Protestant nominee.
My former colleague and current friend Reverend Phil Haslanger wrote an article in response to the poll proposing that us "church folks" use tools like the internet and social media to share the resources of our traditions with the almost 14% of adult Americans who are unaffiliated but also have a spiritual component to their lives.
Because I'm not an avid techie, that's not where my mind naturally went after my own reading and consideration the poll's findings. I did find, however, that Phil's closing thoughts had a deep resonance for me as I have mulled over the poll's statistics and considered our gospel text for this week. Here's what he wrote...
Too often, I think, we view people who have opted out of organized religion as people who need us to save them. If we treated them more as fellow human wanderers through life, maybe we could each learn a bit from the other.
In that process, we not only might find we have things to offer them. We might also find that our own understanding of the divine and of life are deepened and our sense of service takes on new dimensions as we reach beyond our own concerns.
This "sense of service" seems to me to be just what Jesus is describing as he tries for a third time (in Mark's rendering of the gospel) to help his disciples get clear on what truly following him and living life in his pattern will entail. Jesus is trying to help them move from visions of power and glory to the harder but more powerful choice of servant leadership that lifts up the one being served and gives glory to the God who began this journey with a gift of selfless love.
It's a tough sell, especially to followers who are interested in moving to the front of the line. And James and John are in the middle of trying to make a tough sell of their own. That's why they try to get Jesus to say "yes" before they even ask the question.
Here are James and John asking Jesus for a box seat in the great golden beyond out of what appears to be their own ambition, self-interest, and narcissism. And here is Jesus answering them with a reminder that this kin-dom work is a hard slog. In some ways it seems like they aren't even having the same conversation. If they're looking for power and glory, then they're following the wrong guy.
In the same way, if we're looking at the numbers of the unaffiliated, rubbing our hands, and making programming plans to raise our numbers and save some souls, then we're forgetting the sense of service we find in the life and love of Jesus. We're missing his point altogether. (We're also not reading the poll very thoroughly -- 88% of the unaffiliated aren't looking to lose the "un.")
The numbers change, but our mission doesn't. Do we remember what it is? What has Jesus been up to in Mark's gospel?
* healing and restoring the sick and outcast (6:55-56; 7:34-35; 8:25)
* feeding the hungry (6:41; 8:6-8)
* welcoming and blessing children (9:36-37; 10:14-16)
* protecting and providing for the vulnerable (10:5-12)
* and all the while warning those who would listen about his impending suffering and death (8:31; 9:31; 10:33-34)
Jesus has been walking with and serving the lowly and downtrodden. He has lived sacrificially and will soon sacrifice his life for all. This is the sense of service he is asking of his disciples. This is his mission. This is our mission.
Right?
I have a friend from seminary whom I have heard say on more than one occasion that she knows she is destined for "a large pulpit." I know these kinds of dreams and ambitions well myself. I think we all do. Wouldn't a sizeable church in a growing community with a comfortable salary solve a lot of problems and alleviate a lot of stress? And there are any number of ways these kind of yearnings can show up in the individual lives of our congregants and in the life of our churches. It is easy to get caught up in the fury of our own desires and misunderstand them as discipleship. It is easy to mistake our self-centered striving for service. But is all our hard work the work of the kin-dom? What is the sense of service with which we approach our strivings?
Sometimes our striving isn't driven only by ambition, selfishness, or narcissism. Sometimes it's more complicated than that. Maybe it was for James and John too. Right before our gospel passage for today, Mark's writer tells us that "those who followed were afraid." Charles Campbell writes in Feasting on the Word:
Understood within this context, James and John become somewhat more sympathetic characters. Maybe Jesus' ominous predictions of his passion have become clear to them. Maybe they do understand what lies ahead. And being afraid, they seek the promise of a secure future. James and John may not just be power-hungry; they may rather be acting quite naturally on their fears.
-- Feasting on the Word [Year B, Vol. 3], edited by David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Westminster John Knox, 2009), pp. 191-193
Maybe the grappling we see from James and John stems from their own fears about what lies ahead. Maybe they are seeking seats of comfort and protection wrapped in the glory of God. Could this kind of grappling also be behind our reach for success and why we often let our ambitions lead us? To know we are safe, to know we have made it beyond the discomfort, the unknown, the struggle? Campbell continues...
This connection between fear and the quest for security certainly calls for homiletical exploration in contemporary pulpits. The fear of terrorism has led to all kinds of fateful actions, including government surveillance of citizens and preemptive war -- all in the name of security. Fear over the mainline church's future -- even its survival -- has led to all kinds of efforts to secure ourselves (not unlike James and John), rather than risking the way of the cross.
Jesus' response to James and John about sharing in his baptism and drinking from his cup can be seen as a warning about the risks involved in walking the way of the cross, but it can also be seen as comfort for their fears. The way is hard, the struggle is long, and glory is a long time (and maybe never) coming, Jesus tells them. Be sure you know what you're getting into with me. But also be sure that I am with you, and I will give you strength and provision for this journey.
Once more from Campbell...
Jesus' words may also be read as an extraordinary promise: "You will not always be driven by your fears and your need for security. Rather, you will be empowered to take up your cross and follow me. You will be faithful disciples even to the end." Here is the great promise for the church. We need not always live in fear; we need not continually seek our own security. Rather, we have Jesus' promise that we can and will live as faithful disciples as we seek to follow him. It is an extraordinary promise made to such a fumbling, bumbling group of disciples -- then and now!
In all our ambition, striving, grappling, and in all the fears that lie beneath them, there is always grace -- grace for the long, hard slog for the kin-dom. There may not be glory, but there will be glorious company -- the kind that continually renews and calls us to new life... the kind that gives us strength and provision for the journey. We share the baptism and the cup of Jesus. This is our challenge and our grace. This is our warning and our promise.
The numbers change, but our mission doesn't. Do we remember what it is? Can we take on the sense of service Jesus is calling us to as his disciples? It doesn't require that we panic about our survival or reinvent ourselves when a new poll appears. It does require us to be about the business of those seated next to Jesus, the business the growing number of the unaffiliated already thinks we're good at according to the Pew Forum's findings -- building life-giving community, feeding the hungry, and serving the poor and downtrodden. In other words, becoming great by serving others (Mark 10:43). This is not the glory James and John (and probably we) imagined. But it can be glorious in a hard-slog kind of way.
James B. Howell of Lectionary Homiletics writes of this: "Following Jesus in a life of servanthood transforms us unto eternal life.... Following Jesus... can lead toward wholeness. Servanthood is a means to grace" (Feasting on the Word [Year B, Vol. 3], p. 192).
Now that's the sort of thing that should have all kinds of people talking.
ILLUSTRATIONS
Bobby Hogg died in mid-October at the age of 92. Hogg was a resident of Scotland's Black Isle and when he died, something died with him. Hogg was the last speaker of the Comarty dialect, which was once the common language of the seaside town of Comarty, located 175 miles north of Edinburgh. Many village dialects, like the Comarty dialect, are quickly disappearing, never again to be restored. A standardization of language that is being fostered by compulsory public education, urbanization, and the mass media are causing these rural dialects to become extinct.
Jesus, in our gospel reading, outlines what it means to be a servant of the Lord. But in a changing world the question becomes: Will we be able to speak the language of the people or are we speaking an outmoded dialect?
* * *
The Wall Street Journal did a study on how long feature films at movie theaters are delayed because of "pre-preview" commercials followed by coming-attractions trailers. Pre-preview advertisements take approximately 25 to 27 minutes prior to movie's starting time. Then preview trailers for soon-to-be-released films (which begin at the feature film's scheduled time) last from eight to 25 minutes. Each trailer is limited to only 2-? minutes in length (the average time of one's attention span). So before the movie for which one bought a ticket even begins, one could have viewed more than ten coming-attractions trailers.
This 25-minute delay is disturbing to theater owners, who make most of their money not from tickets but from the concession stand. Therefore, they want to rotate patrons in and out of the movie house as quickly as possible.
The practice continues because advertisers and film producers have what is most sought after -- a captive audience. That is, people who are sitting in a dark room with nothing else to do (texting aside) but to look the previews on the big screen.
Jesus, in our gospel reading, outlines what it means to be a servant of the Lord. While we have someone's attention (and before they become irritated), let us not delay in getting to the "feature" message of our calling.
* * *
When Malala Yousufzai was 11 years old, the young Pakistani girl began a blog in cooperation with the BBC describing what life was like under the Taliban. She wrote under the pseudonym of Gul Makai. In 2009 she began to speak publicly about the need for girls' education, which the Taliban opposes.
Last week, as Malala, now 14, was on a bus coming home from school, a gunman walked up to her and shot her in the head and neck. She survived the Taliban's attempt to silence her, though the threat remains as the Taliban declared they will still assassinate her. Ahsanullah Ahsan, a spokesman for the Taliban, said of Malala's public message, "This was a new chapter of obscenity, and we have to finish this chapter."
Jesus said, "The cup that I drink you will drink." Are we able to speak out against social injustice, which is to drink the cup that Jesus drank?
* * *
There is, deep down within all of us, an instinct. It's a kind of drum major instinct -- a desire to be out front, a desire to lead the parade, a desire to be first.
What was the answer that Jesus gave James and John? It's very interesting. One would have thought that Jesus would have said, "You are out of your place. You are selfish. Why would you raise such a question?"
But that isn't what Jesus did. He did something altogether different. He said in substance, "Oh, I see, you want to be first. You want to be great. You want to be important. You want to be significant. Well, you ought to be. If you're going to be my disciple, you must be." But he reordered priorities. And he said, "Yes, don't give up this instinct. It's a good instinct if you use it right. It's a good instinct if you don't distort it and pervert it. Don't give it up. But I want you to be first in love. I want you to be first in moral excellence. I want you to be first in generosity. That is what I want you to do...."
By giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great. Because everybody can serve....
-- from "The Drum Major Instinct," a sermon on Mark 10:35-45 preached by Martin Luther King Jr. on February 4, 1968, at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church
* * *
Servanthood must be learned. Canute, the Danish king of England during the tenth century, was often praised for his greatness, power, and invincibility. He ordered his throne carried to the seashore, where he set it upon the beach and, seated on it, commanded the waves not to draw near enough to soak him. Nature had other plans.
Having failed in his attempt to control the waves, the king removed his royal crown, and according to the chronicles, from that time forward never wore it again. Instead, he hung it upon an image of the crucified Christ.
* * *
As the disciples bicker about their respective places in the kingdom, the opportunity emerges to better understand servant leadership. The sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington is well known for her work. The grounds of Brookgreen Gardens in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, are dotted with many of her works.
One of her less-obvious efforts adorns the grounds of the School of Education at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. The statue, named The Torchbearers, depicts a person astride a horse with his head turned over his shoulder to watch those who follow, while his arm holds a torch aloft illuminating the way for the horse to lead. It is a work that mirrors the servant leader's dependence on the one who supports them, concern for those who look to them, and responsibility to share the gifts they hold.
* * *
The phrase "Servant Leadership" was first coined by Robert K. Greenleaf, the founder of the Center for Applied Ethics. The concept was inspired by Herman Hesse's novella Journey to the East and expounded on in Greenleaf's essay "The Servant as Leader," which was published in 1970 and later expanded to a book.
While Greenleaf never gave a concise definition of the term "servant leader," his followers later compiled a list of ten attributes of servant leadership that they gleaned from his work:
* listening
* empathy
* healing
* awareness
* persuasion
* conceptualization
* foresight
* stewardship
* commitment to growth of people
* building community
* * *
Robert Greenleaf describes how the concept of Servant Leadership was inspired by his reading of Hermen Hesse's novella The Journey East:
In this story, we see a band of men on a mythical journey.... The central figure of the story is Leo, who accompanies the party as the servant who does their menial chores, but who also sustains them with his spirit and his song. He is a person of extraordinary presence. All goes well until Leo disappears. Then the group falls into disarray and the journey is abandoned. They cannot make it without the servant Leo. The narrator, one of the party, after some years of wandering, finds Leo and is taken into the Order that had sponsored the journey. There he discovers that Leo, whom he had known first as servant, was in fact the titular head of the Order, its guiding spirit, a great and noble leader.
* * *
Author P.G. Wodehouse is probably most famous for a character named Reginald Jeeves -- or more popularly, just Jeeves. Originally invented as a small character with only two spoken lines, Jeeves became Wodehouse's most popular character, appearing in 35 short stories, 11 novels, 3 movies, 2 television series, a play, 2 musicals, 2 radio programs, and a comic book. He is also the inspiration for the internet search engine Ask.com, which was originally called AskJeeves.com.
Jeeves is the personal valet to Bertram "Bertie" Wilberforce Wooster, a wealthy bachelor and something of a drone who is constantly getting into trouble from which he can be extricated only through Jeeves' genius for machination and manipulation.
A genius in his own right, Jeeves prefers the role of "gentleman's gentleman" or personal valet, though we are told that when called upon to do so he can serve as a butler for a whole family and "buttle with the best of them." Jeeves is highly educated, erudite, well-read, and extremely intelligent. And no matter how much Bertie believes himself to be in charge of things, it is always Jeeves who solves the problems and sees things through to a successful conclusion.
In one of the short stories, Jeeves explains to the reader that he prefers to serve a gentleman who is not very bright (Bertie fits the bill perfectly), as intelligent people often insist on attempting to solve their own problems when a well-chosen servant is much better suited to the task.
In all of the Jeeves stories, Jeeves never fails to lead those he serves into making the right decisions and he always does so by being the perfect servant.
* * *
Scenario 1: You have received an invitation to dine with a distinguished community leader. On the appointed day, you anxiously arrive at the massive entrance to his palatial estate, ring the bell, and wait. Immediately you are greeted by a gracious butler who takes your coat, puts you at ease with just the right words of how glad the host is that you have come, and escorts you down the hallway to the presence of the revered and generous host. After greetings and introductions, a great feast begins...
Scenario 2: Same invitation... same palatial estate... same massive entrance. This time, however, the butler, after taking your coat, strikes up a conversation with you in the foyer about the weather, his health, what his children want to study when they go to college, and so forth. You're drawn into the conversation and after a lengthy and engaging chat, you take your coat and go home. On the way home, you come to an alarming realization: you never saw the host!
You say, "It would never happen!" But sadly, it happens all too often. Worship leaders and musicians (... and really all ministers) are like butlers whose job it is to bring the congregation before the king. But many people on their way home from the service find themselves with a nagging dissatisfaction... they didn't get to see the king.
-- from "On Being a Good Butler" by Gerrit Gustafson
* * *
There are probably few words in the English language that are as overused as the word "awesome." Friends are described as "awesome dudes." Everything from movies to sporting events are described as "awesome," when they are in fact merely exciting, fascinating, or simply interesting.
"Awe" is defined as a mixture of wonder and dread, a feeling of amazement and respect mixed with fear that is often coupled with a feeling of personal insignificance or powerlessness. It's the feeling that Job must have had as God answered him out of the whirlwind. And that is exactly what I felt in September when I stood at the edge of the Grand Canyon.
One of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Grand Canyon defies any attempt to encompass it. Words cannot approach anything like an accurate description. They give you the facts but not the feelings. Even pictures cannot capture the experience of standing in the presence of something that, well, awesome.
Imagine the experience of those who first came upon it:
* The chasm is 277 miles long and up to 18 miles wide.
* Its average depth is 5,200 feet or approximately one mile.
* It took 3-6 million years to form, and erosion continues to alter its contours. Geologists believe that the rim was once more than a mile higher than it currently is and has been lowered from erosion.
* The canyon includes 70 species of mammals, 250 species of birds, 25 types of reptiles, and five species of amphibians.
* It was formed by the Colorado River, which flows west through the canyon and averages about 300 feet wide and 100 feet deep, and flows at an average speed of four miles per hour.
Now that's awesome!
-- Dean Feldmeyer
* * *
There is a website called "Oh My That's Awesome" (www.ohmythatsawesome.com). The motto is "We look for awesome stuff and then we put it here for you." Here are some of the things that are currently listed on the website:
* a man's ring made up of tiny gears
* a tie with the Android mascot on it
* a 26-pound gummy bear
* game six of the 2011 World Series
* a nightclub in Bangkok that, well, just looks kinda awesome
* a canned beverage called Sleepyhead that bills itself as "the opposite of an energy drink"
* a pair of snow globe salt and pepper shakers
* an ice tray that lets you make shot glasses out of ice
* a 10-foot tall beach ball
Cool, interesting, funny, even fascinating. But awesome? I don't know.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: Bless God, our God, for God is very great.
People: God is clothed with honor and majesty,
Leader: God is wrapped in light as with a garment.
People: Our God stretches out the heavens like a tent,
Leader: O God, how manifold are your works!
People: In wisdom you have made them all. Praise God!
OR
Leader: God calls us near so that we may reflect God's love and grace.
People: We come to receive and pass on the compassion of our God.
Leader: God calls us near to clean and polish us.
People: We come anxious to become more reflective of God.
Leader: God desires to love us through our loving others.
People: There is nothing more joyous that sharing God's love with others.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty"
found in:
UMH: 64/65
H82: 362
PH: 138
AAHH: 229
NNBH: 1
NCH: 277
CH: 4
LBW: 166
ELA: 413
Renew: 204
"How Like a Gentle Spirit"
found in:
UMH: 115
NCH: 443
CH: 69
"All Things Bright and Beautiful"
found in:
UMH: 147
H82: 405
PH: 267
NCH: 31
CH: 61
"Jesu, Jesu"
found in:
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELA: 708
CCB: 66
Renew: 289
"O Love, How Deep"
found in:
UMH: 267
H82: 448/449
PH: 83
NCH: 209
LBW: 88
ELA: 322
"Lord, Whose Love Through Humble Service"
found in:
UMH: 581
H82: 610
PH: 427
CH: 461
LBW: 423
ELA: 712
Renew: 286
"O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee"
found in:
UMH: 430
H82: 659/660
PH: 357
NNBH: 445
NCH: 503
CH: 602
LBW: 492
ELA: 818
"We Meet You, O Christ"
found in:
UMH: 257
PH: 311
CH: 183
"Make Me a Servant"
found in:
CCB: 90
"All I Need Is You"
CCB: 100
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: 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
ELA: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who knows our needs before we even speak and who knows how ignorant we are of even our own needs: Grant us the wisdom and courage to seek from you the things we need and not just the things we desire; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We have come to worship you, O God, and to seek from you the things we need to be true disciples of Jesus. As we listen for your voice, help us to be open to what you have to offer us. Help us to look beyond our selfish desires that do not satisfy and to look for true life from you. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially the ways in which we seek from God the things that are trivial and avoid the things that give meaning to our lives.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We are more interested in our own status and standing than we are in the true needs of those around us. You offer us life that is eternal, abundant, and joyful, and we fuss about whether or not we are well thought of in the community. You offer us the opportunity to live as your presence in the world, and we worry about our physical looks. Forgive us and empower us with your Spirit to live as your children and as true disciples of Jesus. Amen.
Leader: God does have wondrous gifts to offer us and a way of becoming great that is meaningful and fulfilling. Receive the love and grace of God that you may share it with others and so know the true greatness of serving.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We praise and worship you, O God, for your compassion and love for your creation.
(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 are more interested in our own status and standing than we are in the true needs of those around us. You offer us life that is eternal, abundant, and joyful, and we fuss about whether or not we are well thought of in the community. You offer us the opportunity to live as your presence in the world, and we worry about our physical looks. Forgive us and empower us with your Spirit to live as your children and as true disciples of Jesus.
We thank you for the ways in which you offer your own life to us and invite us to be part of your gracious presence in the world. We thank you for those you send our way who are in need that we may have the opportunity reflect your image into their lives.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We offer to you our prayers for those in need. We pray for your children who have lost their way in life and for those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit. We pray for those who live in violence and anger. We pray that as you move among them you will also move us to reach out in loving service to them.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father... Amen.
(or if the Lord's Prayer 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 Sermon Starter
When I was a boy, I wanted a football outfit for Christmas. I wanted the shirt and pants, the helmet and pads. I must have begged a lot, because I got it. But then I was really disappointed. When we got together to play football, nobody wanted to play with me if I was wearing pads and a helmet and they weren't. I never really got to use the equipment. What I wanted looked great, but it wasn't anything I needed.
John and James thought they really wanted something, but what they asked for wasn't what they needed. Jesus knew what they needed and offered them that instead.
You probably have a similar story to share with the children.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
Serving Others
Mark 10:35-45
Objects: a large kettle, a large stirring spoon, some bowls, and some cans of soup
Good morning, boys and girls! Today we are going to learn something about being a disciple of Jesus. How many of you would like to be a disciple? (let the children answer) Why do you think it would be good to be a disciple of Jesus? (let them answer) Do you think that Jesus would give you a little extra if you were one of his disciples? (let them answer)
Have you heard the story about the time that the brothers James and John asked Jesus if they could have a special place in heaven? They wanted to sit close and be a part of the action in heaven. They wanted Jesus to tell them that when they died and went to heaven, they would be special people in heaven, different from everyone else. Jesus told them that those kinds of decisions belonged to the Father and not to him. Jesus also told them that greatness did not come with being important but with helping other people.
How many of you know what a soup kitchen is? (let them answer) A soup kitchen is a place where the very poor can come to eat every day and it doesn't cost them anything. People like you, your mother and dad, and other Christians buy food and send it to the soup kitchen. Then sharing people go to the soup kitchen and make good things for people to eat. Finally, when everything is made and ready to eat, these sharing people serve the people their food. When the meal has been served and everyone is full, more sharing people clean up the kitchen and the place where the people ate.
These are the servants of the poor who serve and care for them. Jesus said that if you are going to be great, you must first be a servant. There are lots of ways for us to be servants. We have people in our church who make blankets and quilts and send them to people that have no blankets. Other people gather up wheelchairs and send them to poor hospitals far away. Some of our people travel thousands of miles to dig wells or build houses, schools, and churches for people who are too poor to make them. We can give books, first-aid kits, and fishing equipment so that poor people can help themselves.
Christians are called to serve others and that is what makes a great Christian. James and John learned a good lesson that day, and every one of us should learn the same thing that Jesus taught them. Just remember, "Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant."
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, October 21, 2012, issue.
Copyright 2012 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.
In this installment of The Immediate Word, team member Mary Austin wonders if a similar dynamic is also at work in terms of the questions and attitudes Americans have about God, the church, and religion, as revealed by a comprehensive survey released last week by the Pew Forum. For those of us in the church, the headline-worthy takeaways from the survey were disturbing if not surprising, because for the first time 1 in 5 Americans now consider themselves as having "no religion," and Protestants are no longer a majority of Americans. But Mary suggests that if we focus our attention on those declining trends we may be missing the point, and if we spend much of our energy in trying to reverse them, we also might have misplaced priorities. Like James and John, we may be asking the wrong question -- or the right question but without fully grasping what's really important. Jesus sets them straight about how difficult the road ahead will be... and Mary points out that, just as with the disciples, putting our illusions about what constitutes "success" to rest may actually allow us to better get in touch with what Jesus is asking of us.
Team member Leah Lonsbury offers some additional thoughts on the gospel text and its call to service and the hard work of servant leadership. Leah notes that when viewed from this perspective, the numbers are actually irrelevant -- our task is about the day-to-day challenge of reaching out to others and building community. Like James and John, that may not be the reward we hoped was coming... but it may be the only way to actually reach those who have concluded that the church is too focused on rules and tradition.
Asking the Right Questions
by Mary Austin
Mark 10:35-45
Like a young child or a wily friend, the disciples come and ask Jesus: "Will you do us a favor?" Too wise to say an immediate yes, Jesus answers them with a question of his own.
Questions abound in the spiritual life, and the recent Pew Forum survey of attitudes about religion was also filled with questions. The questions asked thousands of Americans about their beliefs, attitudes toward religion and spirituality, and spiritual practices. The survey confirmed that fewer people are connected with a place of worship or even feel that it's important. The change in feelings about religion asks even deeper questions for all of us who do find a home within a denomination or a congregation.
The question Jesus asks, and the questions we all ask, give shape to our faith.
THE WORLD
The Pew Research Center just released their survey of religion in American life and found -- to no one's surprise -- that religious affiliation and connection continue to decline. Fewer people belong to a formal spiritual community or choose to identify themselves as religious. As the survey reports: "In the last five years alone, the unaffiliated have increased from just over 15% to just under 20% of all U.S. adults. Their ranks now include more than 13 million self-described atheists and agnostics (nearly 6% of the U.S. public), as well as nearly 33 million people who say they have no particular religious affiliation (14%)."
People are less connected with religion and less interested in it: "The number of Americans who do not identify with any religion continues to grow at a rapid pace. One fifth of the U.S. public -- and a third of adults under 30 -- are religiously unaffiliated today, the highest percentages ever in Pew Research Center polling." Attendance at religious services is down, and people report that religion is less important to them.
Part of the decline is what the survey calls "generational replacement." Younger people are less likely than older ones to be religious or connected with a church. The survey reports that "young adults today are much more likely to be unaffiliated than previous generations were at a similar stage in their lives."
Yet, people still report being deeply spiritual. The report says that "many of the country's 46 million unaffiliated adults are religious or spiritual in some way. Two thirds of them say they believe in God (68%). More than half say they often feel a deep connection with nature and the earth (58%), while more than a third classify themselves as 'spiritual' but not 'religious' (37%), and one-in-five (21%) say they pray every day. In addition, most religiously unaffiliated Americans think that churches and other religious institutions benefit society by strengthening community bonds and aiding the poor." But they won't be showing up at church any time soon. "With few exceptions, though, the unaffiliated say they are not looking for a religion that would be right for them. Overwhelmingly, they think that religious organizations are too concerned with money and power, too focused on rules, and too involved in politics."
People are seeking meaning and connection -- but not at church.
THE WORD
The disciples should know better by now, but they still ask Jesus, as we all so often do, to give them whatever they want. Their request turns out to be asking to take their places beside him in a glorious future. Jesus asks them a question in turn, wondering if they're really up to the job they're asking for. Matthew's version of the same story has their mother asking the question on their behalf, as if to soften up their greed or their impatience for glory. Mark's gospel is famous for things hidden and secret, and Jesus' purpose is still a mystery to these impetuous followers, as it often is to us too.
As Matt Skinner of Luther Seminary writes: "When Jesus softly chastises the two for their ignorance and speaks about 'the cup' he must drink (see 14:36) and 'the baptism' he must undergo, he reiterates that violence and death await him in Jerusalem.... Mark's gospel emphasizes that such rejection and death are inevitable and required, because of who Jesus is, because of the boundary-breaking character of his ministry..." Being at Jesus' left and right hand is a guarantee of being in places of pain, suffering, and death. In a beautiful and ironic illustration of that, the people at Jesus' left and right hand in his final moments are the two thieves.
This question of "are you able" comes at the heart of who Jesus is. He doesn't shrink from the demands of faith or from sharing those demands with those who are close to him.
CRAFTING THE SERMON
It's no accident that Mark sets all of these conversations between Jesus and his friends -- about suffering, death, and being a servant -- on the way to Jerusalem. The second half of Mark's gospel is their epic journey toward Jerusalem and the cross, and Jesus and his followers are "on the way" as they talk about these hard realities of Christian faith. If we are "on the way" to anything in the life of faith, we have to face the same hard truths.
Jesus illuminates the truth by asking questions, but we often prefer certainty. Much of popular religion has been more about answers than questions. We and our fellow preachers have offered people a gospel of success and prosperity instead of asking the hard questions that Jesus asks. We fail to help people ask and learn to answer their own hard questions: "What gifts do I have by the pure grace of God?" "What is God calling me to do?" "What gives my life meaning and purpose?"
The sermon might also acknowledge that we often ask the wrong questions in our churches. "How did we do it last year?" "Will people be mad if we change this?" And, of course, the thing we always ask: "How can we get more members?" Or more specifically: "How can we reach young families?" Our questions may be as well-meaning, and as wrong, as the ones James and John ask.
The decline of the place of religion in American life is painful to watch from the inside. And yet, in the end I suspect that it will be good for all of us. People don't have to come to church anymore, and church is no longer an automatic part of life. In that space, we have the opportunity to let go of anything that we think will make us popular, palatable, or easy, and ask the kind of questions that Jesus asked. Our mission is not about filling pews or offering plates, but about helping people find a deep connection with God. Part of that is the hard work of dying to ourselves and our illusions and learning to be servants. As Jesus says so clearly and so unpopularly, "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many." The decline of religious life is not the decline of God. It is a chance for all of us to think anew about church and faith and where we're asking the wrong things. It is a chance to let go and to seek a faithful future.
We, as followers of Jesus, know better than anyone that new life comes from death and that dying is the first half of rising.
SECOND THOUGHTS
What's Your Sense (of Service)?
by Leah Lonsbury
Mark 10:35-45
A poll that was released last week by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public life reveals that nearly 20% of Americans now consider themselves "unaffiliated" with a religion. As you can imagine, this has all kinds of people talking.
Jesse Galef, communications director for the Secular Student Alliance, said that the growing number of the unaffiliated should bring about greater political representation for secular interests and spoke about his relief that atheists and agnostics "won't be dismissed or ignored anymore" as a result. (Perhaps Galef didn't read the part of the poll reporting that amongst the unaffiliated, 68% say they believe in God, 37% describe themselves as "spiritual but not religious," and one in five say they pray every day.)
Rachel Zoll of the Associated Press focused on the fact that this is the first time that the number of self-reporting Protestant adults in the U.S. has dipped "with certainty" below 50%. This drop is the emphasis of her article, despite the fact that she begins by saying it has "long been anticipated" and comes at a time when no Protestants sit on the U.S. Supreme Court and the Republican party has its first-ever ticket filled with no Protestant nominee.
My former colleague and current friend Reverend Phil Haslanger wrote an article in response to the poll proposing that us "church folks" use tools like the internet and social media to share the resources of our traditions with the almost 14% of adult Americans who are unaffiliated but also have a spiritual component to their lives.
Because I'm not an avid techie, that's not where my mind naturally went after my own reading and consideration the poll's findings. I did find, however, that Phil's closing thoughts had a deep resonance for me as I have mulled over the poll's statistics and considered our gospel text for this week. Here's what he wrote...
Too often, I think, we view people who have opted out of organized religion as people who need us to save them. If we treated them more as fellow human wanderers through life, maybe we could each learn a bit from the other.
In that process, we not only might find we have things to offer them. We might also find that our own understanding of the divine and of life are deepened and our sense of service takes on new dimensions as we reach beyond our own concerns.
This "sense of service" seems to me to be just what Jesus is describing as he tries for a third time (in Mark's rendering of the gospel) to help his disciples get clear on what truly following him and living life in his pattern will entail. Jesus is trying to help them move from visions of power and glory to the harder but more powerful choice of servant leadership that lifts up the one being served and gives glory to the God who began this journey with a gift of selfless love.
It's a tough sell, especially to followers who are interested in moving to the front of the line. And James and John are in the middle of trying to make a tough sell of their own. That's why they try to get Jesus to say "yes" before they even ask the question.
Here are James and John asking Jesus for a box seat in the great golden beyond out of what appears to be their own ambition, self-interest, and narcissism. And here is Jesus answering them with a reminder that this kin-dom work is a hard slog. In some ways it seems like they aren't even having the same conversation. If they're looking for power and glory, then they're following the wrong guy.
In the same way, if we're looking at the numbers of the unaffiliated, rubbing our hands, and making programming plans to raise our numbers and save some souls, then we're forgetting the sense of service we find in the life and love of Jesus. We're missing his point altogether. (We're also not reading the poll very thoroughly -- 88% of the unaffiliated aren't looking to lose the "un.")
The numbers change, but our mission doesn't. Do we remember what it is? What has Jesus been up to in Mark's gospel?
* healing and restoring the sick and outcast (6:55-56; 7:34-35; 8:25)
* feeding the hungry (6:41; 8:6-8)
* welcoming and blessing children (9:36-37; 10:14-16)
* protecting and providing for the vulnerable (10:5-12)
* and all the while warning those who would listen about his impending suffering and death (8:31; 9:31; 10:33-34)
Jesus has been walking with and serving the lowly and downtrodden. He has lived sacrificially and will soon sacrifice his life for all. This is the sense of service he is asking of his disciples. This is his mission. This is our mission.
Right?
I have a friend from seminary whom I have heard say on more than one occasion that she knows she is destined for "a large pulpit." I know these kinds of dreams and ambitions well myself. I think we all do. Wouldn't a sizeable church in a growing community with a comfortable salary solve a lot of problems and alleviate a lot of stress? And there are any number of ways these kind of yearnings can show up in the individual lives of our congregants and in the life of our churches. It is easy to get caught up in the fury of our own desires and misunderstand them as discipleship. It is easy to mistake our self-centered striving for service. But is all our hard work the work of the kin-dom? What is the sense of service with which we approach our strivings?
Sometimes our striving isn't driven only by ambition, selfishness, or narcissism. Sometimes it's more complicated than that. Maybe it was for James and John too. Right before our gospel passage for today, Mark's writer tells us that "those who followed were afraid." Charles Campbell writes in Feasting on the Word:
Understood within this context, James and John become somewhat more sympathetic characters. Maybe Jesus' ominous predictions of his passion have become clear to them. Maybe they do understand what lies ahead. And being afraid, they seek the promise of a secure future. James and John may not just be power-hungry; they may rather be acting quite naturally on their fears.
-- Feasting on the Word [Year B, Vol. 3], edited by David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Westminster John Knox, 2009), pp. 191-193
Maybe the grappling we see from James and John stems from their own fears about what lies ahead. Maybe they are seeking seats of comfort and protection wrapped in the glory of God. Could this kind of grappling also be behind our reach for success and why we often let our ambitions lead us? To know we are safe, to know we have made it beyond the discomfort, the unknown, the struggle? Campbell continues...
This connection between fear and the quest for security certainly calls for homiletical exploration in contemporary pulpits. The fear of terrorism has led to all kinds of fateful actions, including government surveillance of citizens and preemptive war -- all in the name of security. Fear over the mainline church's future -- even its survival -- has led to all kinds of efforts to secure ourselves (not unlike James and John), rather than risking the way of the cross.
Jesus' response to James and John about sharing in his baptism and drinking from his cup can be seen as a warning about the risks involved in walking the way of the cross, but it can also be seen as comfort for their fears. The way is hard, the struggle is long, and glory is a long time (and maybe never) coming, Jesus tells them. Be sure you know what you're getting into with me. But also be sure that I am with you, and I will give you strength and provision for this journey.
Once more from Campbell...
Jesus' words may also be read as an extraordinary promise: "You will not always be driven by your fears and your need for security. Rather, you will be empowered to take up your cross and follow me. You will be faithful disciples even to the end." Here is the great promise for the church. We need not always live in fear; we need not continually seek our own security. Rather, we have Jesus' promise that we can and will live as faithful disciples as we seek to follow him. It is an extraordinary promise made to such a fumbling, bumbling group of disciples -- then and now!
In all our ambition, striving, grappling, and in all the fears that lie beneath them, there is always grace -- grace for the long, hard slog for the kin-dom. There may not be glory, but there will be glorious company -- the kind that continually renews and calls us to new life... the kind that gives us strength and provision for the journey. We share the baptism and the cup of Jesus. This is our challenge and our grace. This is our warning and our promise.
The numbers change, but our mission doesn't. Do we remember what it is? Can we take on the sense of service Jesus is calling us to as his disciples? It doesn't require that we panic about our survival or reinvent ourselves when a new poll appears. It does require us to be about the business of those seated next to Jesus, the business the growing number of the unaffiliated already thinks we're good at according to the Pew Forum's findings -- building life-giving community, feeding the hungry, and serving the poor and downtrodden. In other words, becoming great by serving others (Mark 10:43). This is not the glory James and John (and probably we) imagined. But it can be glorious in a hard-slog kind of way.
James B. Howell of Lectionary Homiletics writes of this: "Following Jesus in a life of servanthood transforms us unto eternal life.... Following Jesus... can lead toward wholeness. Servanthood is a means to grace" (Feasting on the Word [Year B, Vol. 3], p. 192).
Now that's the sort of thing that should have all kinds of people talking.
ILLUSTRATIONS
Bobby Hogg died in mid-October at the age of 92. Hogg was a resident of Scotland's Black Isle and when he died, something died with him. Hogg was the last speaker of the Comarty dialect, which was once the common language of the seaside town of Comarty, located 175 miles north of Edinburgh. Many village dialects, like the Comarty dialect, are quickly disappearing, never again to be restored. A standardization of language that is being fostered by compulsory public education, urbanization, and the mass media are causing these rural dialects to become extinct.
Jesus, in our gospel reading, outlines what it means to be a servant of the Lord. But in a changing world the question becomes: Will we be able to speak the language of the people or are we speaking an outmoded dialect?
* * *
The Wall Street Journal did a study on how long feature films at movie theaters are delayed because of "pre-preview" commercials followed by coming-attractions trailers. Pre-preview advertisements take approximately 25 to 27 minutes prior to movie's starting time. Then preview trailers for soon-to-be-released films (which begin at the feature film's scheduled time) last from eight to 25 minutes. Each trailer is limited to only 2-? minutes in length (the average time of one's attention span). So before the movie for which one bought a ticket even begins, one could have viewed more than ten coming-attractions trailers.
This 25-minute delay is disturbing to theater owners, who make most of their money not from tickets but from the concession stand. Therefore, they want to rotate patrons in and out of the movie house as quickly as possible.
The practice continues because advertisers and film producers have what is most sought after -- a captive audience. That is, people who are sitting in a dark room with nothing else to do (texting aside) but to look the previews on the big screen.
Jesus, in our gospel reading, outlines what it means to be a servant of the Lord. While we have someone's attention (and before they become irritated), let us not delay in getting to the "feature" message of our calling.
* * *
When Malala Yousufzai was 11 years old, the young Pakistani girl began a blog in cooperation with the BBC describing what life was like under the Taliban. She wrote under the pseudonym of Gul Makai. In 2009 she began to speak publicly about the need for girls' education, which the Taliban opposes.
Last week, as Malala, now 14, was on a bus coming home from school, a gunman walked up to her and shot her in the head and neck. She survived the Taliban's attempt to silence her, though the threat remains as the Taliban declared they will still assassinate her. Ahsanullah Ahsan, a spokesman for the Taliban, said of Malala's public message, "This was a new chapter of obscenity, and we have to finish this chapter."
Jesus said, "The cup that I drink you will drink." Are we able to speak out against social injustice, which is to drink the cup that Jesus drank?
* * *
There is, deep down within all of us, an instinct. It's a kind of drum major instinct -- a desire to be out front, a desire to lead the parade, a desire to be first.
What was the answer that Jesus gave James and John? It's very interesting. One would have thought that Jesus would have said, "You are out of your place. You are selfish. Why would you raise such a question?"
But that isn't what Jesus did. He did something altogether different. He said in substance, "Oh, I see, you want to be first. You want to be great. You want to be important. You want to be significant. Well, you ought to be. If you're going to be my disciple, you must be." But he reordered priorities. And he said, "Yes, don't give up this instinct. It's a good instinct if you use it right. It's a good instinct if you don't distort it and pervert it. Don't give it up. But I want you to be first in love. I want you to be first in moral excellence. I want you to be first in generosity. That is what I want you to do...."
By giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great. Because everybody can serve....
-- from "The Drum Major Instinct," a sermon on Mark 10:35-45 preached by Martin Luther King Jr. on February 4, 1968, at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church
* * *
Servanthood must be learned. Canute, the Danish king of England during the tenth century, was often praised for his greatness, power, and invincibility. He ordered his throne carried to the seashore, where he set it upon the beach and, seated on it, commanded the waves not to draw near enough to soak him. Nature had other plans.
Having failed in his attempt to control the waves, the king removed his royal crown, and according to the chronicles, from that time forward never wore it again. Instead, he hung it upon an image of the crucified Christ.
* * *
As the disciples bicker about their respective places in the kingdom, the opportunity emerges to better understand servant leadership. The sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington is well known for her work. The grounds of Brookgreen Gardens in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, are dotted with many of her works.
One of her less-obvious efforts adorns the grounds of the School of Education at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. The statue, named The Torchbearers, depicts a person astride a horse with his head turned over his shoulder to watch those who follow, while his arm holds a torch aloft illuminating the way for the horse to lead. It is a work that mirrors the servant leader's dependence on the one who supports them, concern for those who look to them, and responsibility to share the gifts they hold.
* * *
The phrase "Servant Leadership" was first coined by Robert K. Greenleaf, the founder of the Center for Applied Ethics. The concept was inspired by Herman Hesse's novella Journey to the East and expounded on in Greenleaf's essay "The Servant as Leader," which was published in 1970 and later expanded to a book.
While Greenleaf never gave a concise definition of the term "servant leader," his followers later compiled a list of ten attributes of servant leadership that they gleaned from his work:
* listening
* empathy
* healing
* awareness
* persuasion
* conceptualization
* foresight
* stewardship
* commitment to growth of people
* building community
* * *
Robert Greenleaf describes how the concept of Servant Leadership was inspired by his reading of Hermen Hesse's novella The Journey East:
In this story, we see a band of men on a mythical journey.... The central figure of the story is Leo, who accompanies the party as the servant who does their menial chores, but who also sustains them with his spirit and his song. He is a person of extraordinary presence. All goes well until Leo disappears. Then the group falls into disarray and the journey is abandoned. They cannot make it without the servant Leo. The narrator, one of the party, after some years of wandering, finds Leo and is taken into the Order that had sponsored the journey. There he discovers that Leo, whom he had known first as servant, was in fact the titular head of the Order, its guiding spirit, a great and noble leader.
* * *
Author P.G. Wodehouse is probably most famous for a character named Reginald Jeeves -- or more popularly, just Jeeves. Originally invented as a small character with only two spoken lines, Jeeves became Wodehouse's most popular character, appearing in 35 short stories, 11 novels, 3 movies, 2 television series, a play, 2 musicals, 2 radio programs, and a comic book. He is also the inspiration for the internet search engine Ask.com, which was originally called AskJeeves.com.
Jeeves is the personal valet to Bertram "Bertie" Wilberforce Wooster, a wealthy bachelor and something of a drone who is constantly getting into trouble from which he can be extricated only through Jeeves' genius for machination and manipulation.
A genius in his own right, Jeeves prefers the role of "gentleman's gentleman" or personal valet, though we are told that when called upon to do so he can serve as a butler for a whole family and "buttle with the best of them." Jeeves is highly educated, erudite, well-read, and extremely intelligent. And no matter how much Bertie believes himself to be in charge of things, it is always Jeeves who solves the problems and sees things through to a successful conclusion.
In one of the short stories, Jeeves explains to the reader that he prefers to serve a gentleman who is not very bright (Bertie fits the bill perfectly), as intelligent people often insist on attempting to solve their own problems when a well-chosen servant is much better suited to the task.
In all of the Jeeves stories, Jeeves never fails to lead those he serves into making the right decisions and he always does so by being the perfect servant.
* * *
Scenario 1: You have received an invitation to dine with a distinguished community leader. On the appointed day, you anxiously arrive at the massive entrance to his palatial estate, ring the bell, and wait. Immediately you are greeted by a gracious butler who takes your coat, puts you at ease with just the right words of how glad the host is that you have come, and escorts you down the hallway to the presence of the revered and generous host. After greetings and introductions, a great feast begins...
Scenario 2: Same invitation... same palatial estate... same massive entrance. This time, however, the butler, after taking your coat, strikes up a conversation with you in the foyer about the weather, his health, what his children want to study when they go to college, and so forth. You're drawn into the conversation and after a lengthy and engaging chat, you take your coat and go home. On the way home, you come to an alarming realization: you never saw the host!
You say, "It would never happen!" But sadly, it happens all too often. Worship leaders and musicians (... and really all ministers) are like butlers whose job it is to bring the congregation before the king. But many people on their way home from the service find themselves with a nagging dissatisfaction... they didn't get to see the king.
-- from "On Being a Good Butler" by Gerrit Gustafson
* * *
There are probably few words in the English language that are as overused as the word "awesome." Friends are described as "awesome dudes." Everything from movies to sporting events are described as "awesome," when they are in fact merely exciting, fascinating, or simply interesting.
"Awe" is defined as a mixture of wonder and dread, a feeling of amazement and respect mixed with fear that is often coupled with a feeling of personal insignificance or powerlessness. It's the feeling that Job must have had as God answered him out of the whirlwind. And that is exactly what I felt in September when I stood at the edge of the Grand Canyon.
One of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Grand Canyon defies any attempt to encompass it. Words cannot approach anything like an accurate description. They give you the facts but not the feelings. Even pictures cannot capture the experience of standing in the presence of something that, well, awesome.
Imagine the experience of those who first came upon it:
* The chasm is 277 miles long and up to 18 miles wide.
* Its average depth is 5,200 feet or approximately one mile.
* It took 3-6 million years to form, and erosion continues to alter its contours. Geologists believe that the rim was once more than a mile higher than it currently is and has been lowered from erosion.
* The canyon includes 70 species of mammals, 250 species of birds, 25 types of reptiles, and five species of amphibians.
* It was formed by the Colorado River, which flows west through the canyon and averages about 300 feet wide and 100 feet deep, and flows at an average speed of four miles per hour.
Now that's awesome!
-- Dean Feldmeyer
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There is a website called "Oh My That's Awesome" (www.ohmythatsawesome.com). The motto is "We look for awesome stuff and then we put it here for you." Here are some of the things that are currently listed on the website:
* a man's ring made up of tiny gears
* a tie with the Android mascot on it
* a 26-pound gummy bear
* game six of the 2011 World Series
* a nightclub in Bangkok that, well, just looks kinda awesome
* a canned beverage called Sleepyhead that bills itself as "the opposite of an energy drink"
* a pair of snow globe salt and pepper shakers
* an ice tray that lets you make shot glasses out of ice
* a 10-foot tall beach ball
Cool, interesting, funny, even fascinating. But awesome? I don't know.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: Bless God, our God, for God is very great.
People: God is clothed with honor and majesty,
Leader: God is wrapped in light as with a garment.
People: Our God stretches out the heavens like a tent,
Leader: O God, how manifold are your works!
People: In wisdom you have made them all. Praise God!
OR
Leader: God calls us near so that we may reflect God's love and grace.
People: We come to receive and pass on the compassion of our God.
Leader: God calls us near to clean and polish us.
People: We come anxious to become more reflective of God.
Leader: God desires to love us through our loving others.
People: There is nothing more joyous that sharing God's love with others.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty"
found in:
UMH: 64/65
H82: 362
PH: 138
AAHH: 229
NNBH: 1
NCH: 277
CH: 4
LBW: 166
ELA: 413
Renew: 204
"How Like a Gentle Spirit"
found in:
UMH: 115
NCH: 443
CH: 69
"All Things Bright and Beautiful"
found in:
UMH: 147
H82: 405
PH: 267
NCH: 31
CH: 61
"Jesu, Jesu"
found in:
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELA: 708
CCB: 66
Renew: 289
"O Love, How Deep"
found in:
UMH: 267
H82: 448/449
PH: 83
NCH: 209
LBW: 88
ELA: 322
"Lord, Whose Love Through Humble Service"
found in:
UMH: 581
H82: 610
PH: 427
CH: 461
LBW: 423
ELA: 712
Renew: 286
"O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee"
found in:
UMH: 430
H82: 659/660
PH: 357
NNBH: 445
NCH: 503
CH: 602
LBW: 492
ELA: 818
"We Meet You, O Christ"
found in:
UMH: 257
PH: 311
CH: 183
"Make Me a Servant"
found in:
CCB: 90
"All I Need Is You"
CCB: 100
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: 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
ELA: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who knows our needs before we even speak and who knows how ignorant we are of even our own needs: Grant us the wisdom and courage to seek from you the things we need and not just the things we desire; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We have come to worship you, O God, and to seek from you the things we need to be true disciples of Jesus. As we listen for your voice, help us to be open to what you have to offer us. Help us to look beyond our selfish desires that do not satisfy and to look for true life from you. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially the ways in which we seek from God the things that are trivial and avoid the things that give meaning to our lives.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We are more interested in our own status and standing than we are in the true needs of those around us. You offer us life that is eternal, abundant, and joyful, and we fuss about whether or not we are well thought of in the community. You offer us the opportunity to live as your presence in the world, and we worry about our physical looks. Forgive us and empower us with your Spirit to live as your children and as true disciples of Jesus. Amen.
Leader: God does have wondrous gifts to offer us and a way of becoming great that is meaningful and fulfilling. Receive the love and grace of God that you may share it with others and so know the true greatness of serving.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We praise and worship you, O God, for your compassion and love for your creation.
(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 are more interested in our own status and standing than we are in the true needs of those around us. You offer us life that is eternal, abundant, and joyful, and we fuss about whether or not we are well thought of in the community. You offer us the opportunity to live as your presence in the world, and we worry about our physical looks. Forgive us and empower us with your Spirit to live as your children and as true disciples of Jesus.
We thank you for the ways in which you offer your own life to us and invite us to be part of your gracious presence in the world. We thank you for those you send our way who are in need that we may have the opportunity reflect your image into their lives.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We offer to you our prayers for those in need. We pray for your children who have lost their way in life and for those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit. We pray for those who live in violence and anger. We pray that as you move among them you will also move us to reach out in loving service to them.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father... Amen.
(or if the Lord's Prayer 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 Sermon Starter
When I was a boy, I wanted a football outfit for Christmas. I wanted the shirt and pants, the helmet and pads. I must have begged a lot, because I got it. But then I was really disappointed. When we got together to play football, nobody wanted to play with me if I was wearing pads and a helmet and they weren't. I never really got to use the equipment. What I wanted looked great, but it wasn't anything I needed.
John and James thought they really wanted something, but what they asked for wasn't what they needed. Jesus knew what they needed and offered them that instead.
You probably have a similar story to share with the children.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
Serving Others
Mark 10:35-45
Objects: a large kettle, a large stirring spoon, some bowls, and some cans of soup
Good morning, boys and girls! Today we are going to learn something about being a disciple of Jesus. How many of you would like to be a disciple? (let the children answer) Why do you think it would be good to be a disciple of Jesus? (let them answer) Do you think that Jesus would give you a little extra if you were one of his disciples? (let them answer)
Have you heard the story about the time that the brothers James and John asked Jesus if they could have a special place in heaven? They wanted to sit close and be a part of the action in heaven. They wanted Jesus to tell them that when they died and went to heaven, they would be special people in heaven, different from everyone else. Jesus told them that those kinds of decisions belonged to the Father and not to him. Jesus also told them that greatness did not come with being important but with helping other people.
How many of you know what a soup kitchen is? (let them answer) A soup kitchen is a place where the very poor can come to eat every day and it doesn't cost them anything. People like you, your mother and dad, and other Christians buy food and send it to the soup kitchen. Then sharing people go to the soup kitchen and make good things for people to eat. Finally, when everything is made and ready to eat, these sharing people serve the people their food. When the meal has been served and everyone is full, more sharing people clean up the kitchen and the place where the people ate.
These are the servants of the poor who serve and care for them. Jesus said that if you are going to be great, you must first be a servant. There are lots of ways for us to be servants. We have people in our church who make blankets and quilts and send them to people that have no blankets. Other people gather up wheelchairs and send them to poor hospitals far away. Some of our people travel thousands of miles to dig wells or build houses, schools, and churches for people who are too poor to make them. We can give books, first-aid kits, and fishing equipment so that poor people can help themselves.
Christians are called to serve others and that is what makes a great Christian. James and John learned a good lesson that day, and every one of us should learn the same thing that Jesus taught them. Just remember, "Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant."
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The Immediate Word, October 21, 2012, issue.
Copyright 2012 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.
