Running Quickly Into Battle… With Five Smooth Stones?
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This week the lectionary passage from the Old Testament features one of the Bible's most enduring stories -- young David's encounter with the Philistine giant Goliath. In America we're especially drawn to this episode because its "little guy prevails against overwhelming odds" theme resonates so profoundly with our cultural mythology. We love it when a plucky underdog rises up and smites down an arrogant bully -- and the roles here have been perfectly laid out by central casting. Goliath was the fearsome undefeated champion (who even engages in some "trash talk"), and David a hopelessly overmatched neophyte. The contest was so sure to be a rout that the Vegas oddsmakers weren't even taking bets on the outcome... and a sober assessment of the situation would lead anyone to the same conclusion as Saul, who tells David: "You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth" (1 Samuel 17:33).
We are so enamored of David's unlikely victory that it becomes tempting for us to use it as an analogy -- and even a template -- for any modern situation that involves a battle against overwhelming odds... like the deteriorating civil war in Syria, for example. The ragtag forces fighting against the Assad regime and its well-armed military are (like David) hopelessly outgunned -- and Syrian government forces have been laying siege to towns that harbor the rebels and even engaging in wholesale slaughter of civilians. Yet we want to believe that, like David, they will ultimately prevail. But in this installment of The Immediate Word, new team member Leah Lonsbury suggests that by focusing on the outcome of the battle -- on David's "lucky shot" that fells the giant -- we may be missing the real message that this familiar story provides for our lives: the importance of not being paralyzed by fear and of having the courage to face up to the battle and tangle with the demons and evil that confront us... even in the face of overwhelming firepower that we think is more than we can handle. Leah points out that the key verse of the pericope is not necessarily the final one (which informs us of the outcome of the battle), but rather the penultimate one: "When the Philistine drew nearer to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:48). It is when we open our hearts to God and draw on the strength of faith -- even when giving in to fear and curling up into the fetal position seems the most reasonable response -- that we can be vessels of God's work in the world.
Team member Mary Austin shares some additional thoughts on the gospel lesson, and on how the disciples -- and how we -- react to the storms that surround us. Like the alarmed disciples, we may ask God the same question that many Syrians would pose to the international community: "Do you not care that we are perishing?" But Mary notes that God has the same power over our figurative storms of life that Jesus had in literally stilling a storm: a power mightier than anything that this world can conjure.
Running Quickly into Battle... with Five Smooth Stones?
by Leah Lonsbury
1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23) 32-49; 2 Corinthians 6:1-13
It can be hard to see the light of God's salvation in the darkness of Paul's list of the many and varied ways he is suffering. "Afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, [and] hunger" aren't generally what we envision when we imagine what God's deliverance and redemption might be like.
And then there's David -- so young, so handsome, so... doomed to fail (by the world's standards). Where and how does God's salvation break into his story? Is it in the hardness of that river stone that he throws? Is it in his spot-on aim, or the one chink in Goliath's armor -- his exposed forehead? Or, is God's salvation finding David, Paul, and each one of us in ways that are less obvious, conventional, and one-sided?
How would our stories read differently if the focus was less on that one bright and flashy saving moment and more on God's steadfast faithfulness to our salvation? And what part do we have to play in God's salvation story? What does it require of us -- decisive and victorious action at a key moment, or the willingness to run quickly into battle armed only with five smooth stones? How do we participate in the breaking in of God's light in our lives?
This week's readings from 1 Samuel and 2 Corinthians invite us, in Paul's words, to open our hearts wide and to welcome God's saving power with our own salvation living. This is how the light breaks forth in the darkness, how rejoicing grows out of sorrow, and how life breaks forth from death. This is how young, doomed-to-fail David really conquers Goliath.
THE WORLD
It can be hard, beyond hard, to see the light of God's salvation in the news reports coming in from Syria. At least 10,000 Syrians have been killed in the last fifteen months of conflict, hundreds even after the ceasefire called by the United Nations in mid-April. Homes and cities are being destroyed, and women and children make up a significant number of the recorded casualties. An estimated 95,000 Syrian refugees have fled to Jordan; 24,000 have found their way to Turkey. An unknown number have crossed into Lebanon.
So much chaos, so much loss, so much darkness.
Amnesty International researcher Donatella Rovera recently returned from Syria and compiled a video (http://www.amnestyusa.org/research/reports/deadly-reprisals-deliberate-killings-and-other-abuses-by-syria-s-armed-forces) of the footage she collected and her eyewitness accounts of the situation on the ground there. In it, Rovera shares how every person she met asked some version of the question "Why doesn't the international community do something?"
A video (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57452001/a-look-at-the-front-lines-of-syrias-civil-war/) from a CBS news report shows a Syrian civilian pleading with an exiting UN envoy not to leave. He says their departure will mean that the shelling from government forces and their allies will resume. "We need you to stay! We will keep you safe!" he says to the closed window of the UN vehicle. Moments later, the crowd that was with him is seen chasing the same vehicle as it drives away from Homs.
Beyond Syrian borders, Russia and China have vetoed a resolution of the UN Security Council that would leave the door open for international military intervention in Syria. According to the ambassadors of these two countries, the resolution favors the opposition over the Assad regime -- a choice they are not willing to make.
United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently accused the Russian firm Rosoboronexport of supplying armed helicopters to the Syrian government (http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/12/world/russia-helicopters/index.html) -- the kind that are being used in attacks against Syrian citizens. U.S. Senator John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, also brought to light the fact that the Pentagon has a billion-dollar contract with this same Russian company to supply helicopters to the Afghani military. His opinion was that the U.S. should not be doing business with a company aiding the killing happening in Syria. In response to Cornyn, Pentagon spokesman George Little said, "But I would make the point that, in the case of Afghanistan, the Mi-17 is about giving them what they need and what they can use effectively to take on their own fights inside their own country."
Darkness comes in many forms and from many sources in Syria's story and in the conflicts of our wider human family.
While the international community squabbles and points fingers, more Syrians are dying. How will the light of salvation possibly break into such a dark and dire situation? To take on Paul's words from 2 Corinthians, "See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!" If the time is now, if the day is here, where is God? Where is God's salvation for the Syrian people?
THE WORD
Perhaps David's story and Paul's letter can begin to offer answers to these questions as we observe and struggle with the devastation in Syria, the inaction of the international community, and the stymied UN -- and consider our own journeys from darkness to light. Both David and Paul stood on the foundation of God's faithfulness and readiness to partner with them toward their salvation and the salvation of God's people they served. This week's Psalm picks up on this as well. In the Psalter it reads, "But you, God, reign forever; you established your throne to rule the world with justice and judge all peoples rightly. You defend the oppressed, fortify them in time of trouble. Those who know you, trust you; you never desert the faithful" (Liturgy Training Publications, Psalm 9:8-11). This is the assurance from which Paul writes his letter and the challenge he has for the people of Corinth. It readies and sets David in motion as well.
In this week's passage from 2 Corinthians, Paul points first to God's grace that is available and should not be taken in vain. He also knows God is ready to partner in the work of salvation right then and there. The time is now, Paul says. The day of salvation is here. Let's act on this offer of grace.
David's trust in God's faithfulness and readiness to save makes his victory an early one -- and not necessarily the kind that gets remembered and repeated as the crux of the story. Before David's stone strikes Goliath, before he even loads his sling, salvation has already begun to break through for God's people. David opens the way for God's saving power when he goes to speak with Saul: "Let no one's heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:32).
God's salvation comes when David sets himself in motion, when he puts aside his fears and doubts and trusts that God will hold and strengthen him for whatever lies ahead. The shot to the forehead is remembered, but David's willingness to act and risk is when the way is made for God's salvation.
And so the light begins to break through the darkness.
Paul knows the power of an open and willing heart as well. He warns the Corinthians to throw theirs wide open if they want to discover the saving movement of God in their lives. He encourages them not to guard their lives, their well-being, or their affections too closely, lest they miss the chance to partner with God in their salvation living.
David's heart is already there -- wide open to the people of God who are being threatened. He is moved to act, willing to face the struggle and tangle with a seemingly undefeatable adversary. The story tells us he "ran quickly toward the battle line" to face Goliath so that all would know that the battle was ultimately God's.
The light grows.
David opens himself as a vessel of God's saving power and acts decisively in the face of terrible odds. What seems like foolishness is God's salvation breaking through in the young, inexperienced person of David, the son Jesse sent on a simple errand.
And in this very unlikely, doomed-to-fail youngster, God's salvation shines.
It's important to reemphasize, though, that the light breaks the darkness not through David's lucky shot or the loud thump of Goliath hitting the ground. It's in the strength of David's faith, the bold foolishness of his actions, and the willingness he shows to open wide his heart to the saving power of God. This is David's salvation living, and its light is so powerful that it overcomes the giant, makes the Philistines flee in fear, and emboldens the Israelites to finish the fight and put an end to the anxiety in which they had been living. This is what David means when he says, "All those gathered here will be witness that Yahweh saves without sword or spear. This battle is Yahweh's, who will put all of you into our power."
CRAFTING THE SERMON
In the passage from 2 Corinthians for this week, Paul gives those who would commit David-like acts of crazy love and wild faithfulness a list of how-to's. We've already had the list of calamities the faithful must expect to weather... afflictions, hardships, sleepless nights, hunger, and so on. Paul is ever quick to remind us that God doesn't promise deliverance from the vicissitudes of life, but that our faith will give us the inner armor we need to enter and persevere in the fight for love.
Beyond faith, we are to arm ourselves with "innocence, knowledge, patience and kindness in the Holy Spirit, in sincere love, with the message of truth and the power of God" and "the weapons of justice [in] both right hand and left." In this way, the power of darkness is broken and the light of salvific love begins to change things from the inside out, through relationships, in the building of community and connections that honor the worth of each of God's beloved children.
When this light, this salvation finds it way in, then we are reminded of what David teaches us -- that the battle is God's and will be fought without sword or spear, because in the foolishness of faith, power lies in the most unexpected places -- like in the littlest brother, the handsome but inexperienced sheepherder. And God's salvation keeps shining through, growing in strength and light even when it seems impossible. Like in Syria. Like with Paul and his followers. What the world perceives is not necessarily what is true in God's salvation story as it unfolds in our lives and in our midst. Paul writes, "We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet are well known; as dying, and see -- we are alive; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything" (2 Corinthians 6:8b-10).
The people of Syria have no stone that will easily topple the Goliaths they face. Clear and decisive victory seems nowhere on their immediate horizon, especially without the backing and action of the international community and a plan from the United Nations that has some teeth and can actually end the bloodshed. But the people have shown that they are not afraid of confrontation. They are willing to run quickly into the battle, and like David and Paul tangle with the destructive forces that threaten their lives and their chances to thrive and know peace. With bold foolishness they face overwhelming firepower and far more than it seems they can handle. But it's not the lucky shot, the thud of enemy as he hits the ground that matters... right? It's the open hearts, the strength of faith, and the salvation living on the way there that will bring the light that breaks the darkness. While that light shines, there is life amongst the death and loss, there is truth amidst wrongdoing and injustice, there is joy through the sorrow, and there is the belief that hope will not perish forever.
David's story and Paul's letter can answer the same questions for us in our own particular struggles against the darkness, however it may manifest in our lives, in our communities, and in our wider world. We too can ask: If the time is now, if the day is here, where is God? Where is the light of God's salvation for us?
As Paul encouraged the people of Corinth, opening wide our hearts is a place to start the search. Hearts open to the power and faithfulness of God, hearts that don't (in Paul's words) restrict affections or guard themselves against the call of the Spirit to wild acts of love, are hearts that know the "foolishness of the cross." They are ready to face what no sane person would willingly face and stand ready to be vessels of God's work in the world. And that is a start -- a very bright one indeed.
SECOND THOUGHTS
by Mary Austin
Mark 4:35-41
There are plenty of storms to be found in life, whether it's our personal travails, community unrest, or international upheaval.
As Syria continues to be in a storm of unrest, the New York Times reported Sunday that Russian warships are headed for Syria. Andrew E. Kramer and Alan Cowell report that two assault ships are headed for the Russian naval base closest to Syria. The article notes that this move is "one more sign of alarm about the deteriorating security situation there after United Nations monitors announced over the weekend that they were suspending their operations as violence mounts."
Hope for calm in the storm faded as the United Nations seemed to be giving up on influencing a peace process or even monitoring the violence. The article adds that "The United Nations said the monitors would not be withdrawn from Syria, but were being locked down in Syria's most contested cities, unable to conduct patrols. While the decision to suspend their work was made chiefly to protect the unarmed monitors, the unstated purpose appeared to be to force Russia to intervene to assure that the observers are not the targets of Syrian forces or their sympathizers. Russia has opposed Western intervention and, by some accounts, continues to arm the forces of Mr. Assad."
The people of Syria, under fire by government forces, might well say to the world: "Do you not care that we are perishing?"
USA Today reported last week that suicides are now the second leading cause of death in the military. An article by Gregg Zoroya reported that "The most common way that U.S. service members die outside of combat is by their own hand, according to an analysis released by the Pentagon on Wednesday." Suicide by military personnel in distress has grown in every branch of the military except the Navy. "Since 2010, suicide has outpaced traffic accidents, heart disease, cancer, homicide, and all other forms of death in the military besides combat, the report says. One in four non-combat deaths last year was service members killing themselves." The problem is so dire that there is an average of a suicide a day among troops. If current trends continue, the article notes, with the end of the war in Iraq suicide may outpace combat deaths. "There were 154 confirmed or suspected suicides this year through June 3, while 127 troops died in the Afghanistan War, Pentagon data show."
Military personnel, scarred by PTSD, unable to find work, struggling to adjust to prostheses or battling for financial, medical, or mental health help, might well ask the country they served: "Do you not care that we are perishing?"
It's one of the most plaintive prayers in all of scripture. The disciples, in the midst of the storm, wake Jesus up and ask, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" (Mark 4:38).
These fishermen have listened to Jesus preach and teach all day and have followed gamely along when he suggests going to the other side of the lake. As experienced fishermen, they would have known that the Sea of Galilee was known for storms that come up quickly.
Jesus does an interesting thing. He doesn't tell them not to be afraid. Being afraid in a small boat, on a stormy sea, seems perfectly logical. He doesn't even answer the disciples but turns to the storm and says, "Peace. Be still." It's as if he's talking to an unruly dog. "Be still" is really "be muzzled." In fact, it's as if he's talking to an unruly demon, as he uses these same words in Mark's gospel to call out an unclean spirit. The original language is so beautiful -- it translates literally as "the wind grew weary" and the sea showed a great calm.
Often we see Jesus pray and see that God answers the prayer, but this time Jesus himself rebukes the storm. We are meant to understand here that he himself has the power of God. God's power over the unruly, the chaotic, is the power at work in Jesus as he heals and calls our demons and sets people free from their bondage. In the beginning, God demonstrates the divine power over chaos. Jesus is using that same power here to quiet the storm, and to show that he too has power over the elements.
Michael Lindvall, pastor of Brick Church in New York City, writes about this passage in Feasting on the Word: "The hard truth is that fearsome things are very real: isolation, pain, illness... losing one's job, money problems, failure, illness, and death. As we grow in faith, we come to understand that even though such fearsome things are very real, they do not have the last word. They do not have the ultimate power over us, because... reigning over this world of fearsome things is a God who is mightier than they."
There is someone who cares that we are perishing, and who is right there in the storm with us.
ILLUSTRATIONS
Sometimes it's not how well we fight the battle that matters, but that we fight it at all.
On the second day of the battle of Gettysburg it became clear to the Union forces that their left flank was dangerously exposed, so the 20th Maine Regiment was sent to a hill called "Little Round Top" to hold the flank "at all costs."
Joshua Chamberlain was the 26-year-old colonel in command of the 20th Maine, and he led his regiment in successfully defending Little Round Top against more than a dozen assaults by the 15th Alabama Infantry Regiment -- but by late afternoon of that day casualties were running high, ammunition was running low, and the end of the line was bent back nearly double with men fighting back to back.
Chamberlain would later say that his situation gave him no choice. With their backs to each other there was no room to fight, and if their ammunition ran out the battle would end in defeat for the Union. So he decided on an audacious plan: fix bayonets and charge.
On the next assault by the Confederate troops, the end of the Union line swung around like a door on a hinge, attacking with bayonets fixed, firing their last bullets -- and, to their surprise, the Confederate troops either fled or surrendered.
The 20th Maine took 101 prisoners, won the day, and defended the Union flank for what would turn out to be a total Union victory in the battle of Gettysburg.
* * *
A phobia is an unnatural or inappropriate and persistent fear. For an exhaustive list of recognized phobias you can go to http://phobialist.com/, but here are a few of the more interesting ones.
• Carnophobia is a fear of meat.
• Bacillophobia is a fear of microscopic things.
• Alektorophobia is a fear of chickens.
• Ecclesiophobia is a fear of church or churches (ahem!).
• Hexa-kosioi-hexe-konta-hexa-phobia is the fear of the number 666.
• And if you think that one is long, try this one: Hippopoto-monstro-sesqui-pedalio-phobia. That's the fear of long words.
The disciples in this week's gospel story may have suffered from aquaphobia (a fear of drowning). Or it may have been astraphobia (a fear of storms) that they suffered from. Or it could have been lilapsophobia (a fear of severe storms like hurricanes or tornadoes). Or maybe it was just the lake itself that they were afraid of. That would be limnophobia (a fear of lakes).
One might wonder, however, if a fear of drowning was really all that unreasonable if you are in a first-century fishing boat in the middle of a huge lake during a violent storm.
* * *
The image of carefree children growing up without a worry may not be realistic. A 1986 survey by Kaoru Yamamoto, an educational psychologist at the University of Colorado, found the "top 20" troubles of elementary-aged schoolchildren around the world. The list, with their greatest fear first and in descending order:
1. Losing a parent
2. Going blind
3. Academic retainment
4. Wetting pants in class
5. Parental fights
6. Caught in theft
7. Suspected of lying
8. Poor report card
9. Sent to principal
10. Having an operation
11. Getting lost
12. Ridiculed in class
13. Moving to a new school
14. Scary dream
15. Not making 100 on a test
16. Picked last on a team
17. Losing in a game
18. Giving a class report
19. Going to a dentist
20. New baby
(Copyright 1989 Pediatrics for Parents, Inc. Copyright 2004 Gale Group)
After reading this list one is reminded of the old saying that "sometimes God calms the storm, and sometimes God calms the child."
* * *
I think that the two most beautiful phrases in the English language are these: "I'll go with you" and "I'm on my way."
When I was a child, my parents would often drop my siblings and me off at my great grandparents' farm while they visited other relatives in their southern Indiana hometown. It might have been fun, except that grandma's only indoor plumbing was in the kitchen. The bathroom was outside, across the yard. And patrolling the yard was her rooster, Tom Jones. Tom Jones was big and mean, and he would chase children, other roosters, and even dogs that came into the yard. I was terrified of him.
One day when I was about six years old, I found myself standing at the back door, looking through the screen, and desperately needing to get to the privy, but afraid of the monster rooster that lurked somewhere out of sight in the backyard. I was near panic, frozen with fear, and flooded with despair... and I began to cry.
Then I felt my great-grandma's hand on my shoulder and she said, "Come on, Dean. I'll go with you." Panic subsided. Fear vanished. Despair evaporated. All because my little, round, aged great-grandma knew four of the most beautiful words in the English language.
How often I heard those words as a child or youth, and how I still value them today.
Dad, I had an accident in the car. "I'm on my way."
I have to go to the doctor's office for my diagnosis. "I'll go with you."
I need help. "I'm on my way."
I'm afraid. "I'll go with you."
-- Dean Feldmeyer
* * *
Speaking of dealing with a difficult, scary situation, here are one wag's steps for catching a porcupine:
1. Find a large metal washtub.
2. Approach porcupine from the rear, being careful of the tail.
3. Drop washtub over porcupine.
4. Sit on washtub while figuring out what to do next.
* * *
Hard Times Come Again No More
by Stephen Foster
Let us pause in life's pleasures and count its many tears,
While we all sup sorrow with the poor;
There's a song that will linger forever in our ears;
Oh, hard times come again no more.
Chorus:
'Tis the song, the sigh of the weary,
Hard times, hard times come again no more
Many days you have lingered around my cabin door;
Oh, hard times come again no more.
While we seek mirth and beauty and music light and gay,
There are frail forms fainting at the door;
Though their voices are silent, their pleading looks will say
Oh, hard times come again no more.
(Chorus)
There's a pale drooping maiden who toils her life away,
With a worn heart whose better days are o'er:
Though her voice would be merry, 'tis sighing all the day,
Oh, hard times come again no more.
(Chorus)
'Tis a sigh that is wafted across the troubled wave,
'Tis a wail that is heard upon the shore,
'Tis a dirge that is murmured around the lowly grave,
Oh, hard times come again no more.
(Chorus)
Two excellent renderings of this song on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YrfLnlrquo and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyV60kTvEFE
Sheet music is also available online at no cost, as this song is in the public domain:
http://www.free-scores.com/download-sheet-music.php?pdf=410
* * *
E.Y. "Yip" Harburg worked in his family's appliance store in New York City, and he hated it. What he really wanted to do was write song lyrics. He even wrote to the most famous lyricist in the world, Ira Gershwin, and asked for advice, but Gershwin wasn't very supportive.
Then in 1929 the Great Depression hit, and Harburg lost his store and found himself $70,000 in debt. He wrote to Gershwin again and sent him some examples of his lyrics, and Ira agreed that he had nothing to lose by trying his hand at songwriting. He introduced Yip to a couple of composers, and the first song he wrote with them became not only a hit but the anthem of the Great Depression:
Once I built a railroad, I made it run, made it race against time.
Once I built a railroad; now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once I built a tower up to the sun, brick and rivet and lime;
Once I built a tower; now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once in khaki suits, gee, we looked swell,
Full of that Yankee Doodly Dum,
Half a million boots went slogging through Hell,
And I was the kid with the drum!
Say, don't you remember, they called me Al; it was Al all the time.
Why don't you remember, I'm your pal? Buddy, can you spare a dime?
Yip Harburg went on to write "April in Paris," "Paper Moon," and all of the songs for The Wizard of Oz, including "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." Ironically, it was the Great Depression that launched one of America's most gifted and successful songwriters.
The two most famous recordings of "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime" were sung by Rudy Vallee and Bing Crosby, though some good contemporary versions are also available by Dr. John and Tom Waits. Here's Crosby's version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovndTa7hQDE&feature=related
* * *
As of this writing, Rev. Fred Luter is expected to be elected the next president of the Southern Baptist Convention, and the first African-American to hold that position (). A number of years ago he was asked by then-president James Merritt to preach at a pre-conference event. Merritt, who had never met Luter, invited him in order to show diversity in the denomination. Luter so captivated the conventioneers with his oratory skills that invitations were extended to him to preach nationwide.
As Luter's reputation grew, the members of his congregation, Franklin Avenue Baptist Church located in New Orleans' 9th Ward, expected him to accept a position at a larger and more affluent church. To their continuing dismay, Luter remained an obedient servant to the first church he ever pastored.
After Hurricane Katrina the church was destroyed and the parishioners were scattered across the city. Rather than give in to the futility of rebuilding, Luter began driving the circuit across the city, holding services wherever his people were currently located. In speaking of the tragedy to the Baptist Press, Luter said, "Life is like a vapor on this side of eternity. What you have today could be gone tomorrow. You can't put your trust in earthly things."
David had many faults, as any mortal does. In time, I am sure, we will find this to be true about Luter. But Luter, like David, has the attributes of leadership, commitment, and vision. David has passed on like a vapor, as Luter will one day as the first African American to lead the Southern Baptist Convention, but both will have left behind the presence of an everlasting Spirit that changed the hearts and minds of people and even changed history.
* * *
The Democratic nominee for South Carolina's 3rd Congressional District in this November's elections is Bryan Lamont Doyle. Doyle, a syndicated radio talk show host, does not currently reside in the district. He previously lived in the district when he ran for the seat in 2010. But because of redistricting as a result of the census, his residence in now outside of the original district lines. He has no desire to relocate to the demographic area he is choosing to represent, and federal law does not prohibit someone from living outside the district to compete for the office.
On a similarly related matter, South Carolina law prohibits a convicted felon from holding a state office but not a federal office. Doyle is a convicted felon. He was convicted in 2003 on six counts of fraud and making false statements, resulting in a thirty-month prison sentence. He fraudulently billed Medicare for $503,000 in wheelchairs and cushion seats. As a part of his sentence he has to repay the federal government half of the stolen money, at $250 a month based on his income.
When Dick Harpootlian, the chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party, was asked why a convicted felon was allowed to appear on the slate of candidates seeking to serve in the United States House of Representatives, he replied: "He's legally qualified, A. And B, we're sending him to Washington, where fraud is a way of life. So I certainly don't think it's a disqualifier."
David was selected by Saul for his skills as a leader. David's acts of treachery were not viewed as qualifiers for the office he held as king; but instead they were always something to be looked upon with shame and humiliation. It seems we have lost sight of the biblical message when being schooled in fraud is seen as a leadership trait to be admired.
* * *
With the change in demographics as recorded in the last census, the state of South Carolina has received an additional seat in the United States House of Representatives. There were numerous candidates who sought to represent the newly created 7th Congressional District.
To secure victory in a South Carolina primary, a candidate needs half the vote plus one. If this does not occur, the two top qualifiers compete in a runoff election. Former Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer was the favorite to be placed on the November ballot; but with so many Republican candidates running in the primary, it was expected that Bauer would have to secure the nomination in a runoff election. And this will be the case, as he received only 32% of the vote in last week's primary.
The media has already declared Bauer as the GOP candidate in November based on his name recognition. As the state's former lieutenant governor, his name has been before the people for years. But even more telling is that Bauer has been front page news for the last several months. You see, Bauer had to resign from office after being convicted on ethics violations and campaign finance violations.
In South Carolina the governor and lieutenant governor have independent campaigns and are elected separately; they do not run together on a mutual ticket. At the beginning of his statewide campaign, Bauer, falsified the financial contributions that were made to him. As this was in the early stages, big donors withheld their money to see who would be the front-runner in the race. Bauer claimed a large (but falsified) number to portray that he had the support of the people (as their small contributions added up to a large sum). One of the ways he did this was (being a very wealthy businessman) by giving individuals his own money in order for them to give back to his campaign. Potential candidates, unable to match Bauer's early campaign financial lead, withdrew from the election. The large donors, now considering Bauer the front-runner, contributed to his campaign. Bauer then took most of their money and used it for illegal expenses such as vacations, clothes, and the regular personal and family items that one who is already affluent seems to need more of.
And so now, a man who was forced to resign from office for ethics violations and campaign fraud is the leading GOP contender for the state's newly created 7th Congressional District. But do not be dismayed. If Bauer does not secure the nomination, it may be possible that his place on the ballot may be taken by State Representative Ted Vick, recently convicted on drunk driving and firearms violations.
David was selected by Saul for his skills as a leader. David's acts of treachery were not viewed as qualifiers for the office he held as king; but instead they were always something to be looked upon with shame and humiliation. It seems we have lost sight of the biblical message when an individual who has to surrender his state office for a lack of ethical behavior is still considered honorable enough to serve in the United States House of Representatives.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: God is a stronghold for the oppressed,
People: a stronghold in times of trouble.
Leader: Sing praises to God, who dwells in Zion.
People: Declare God's deeds among the peoples.
Leader: Be gracious to us, O God.
People: So that we may recount all your praises.
OR
Leader: Come, let us trust in our God.
People: In God we trust and are not afraid.
Leader: God goes with us to stand for what is right.
People: In God we find the courage to face the wrong.
Leader: God delights in the ways of justice and mercy.
People: In humility we will walk in God's ways.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"Praise to the Lord, the Almighty"
found in:
UMH: 139
H82: 390
AAHH: 117
NNBH: 2
NCH: 22
CH: 25
ELA: 858/859
Renew: 57
"Give to the Winds Thy Fears"
found in:
UMH: 129
PH: 286
"Be Still, My Soul"
found in:
UMH: 534
AAHH: 135
NNBH: 263
NCH: 488
CH: 566
"Lord, You Give the Great Commission"
found in:
UMH: 584
H82: 528
PH: 429
CH: 459
ELA: 579
Renew: 105
"How Firm a Foundation"
found in:
UMH: 529
H82: 636/637
PH: 361
AAHH: 146
NNBH: 48
NCH: 407
CH: 618
LBW: 507
ELA: 796
"Lift Every Voice and Sing"
found in:
UMH: 519
H82: 599
PH: 563
AAHH: 540
NNBH: 457
CH: 631
LBW: 562
ELA: 841
"This Little Light of Mine"
found in:
UMH: 585
AAHH: 549
NNBH: 511
NCH: 524/525
ELA: 677
"O God of Every Nation"
found in:
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELA: 713
"What Does the Lord Require"
found in:
UMH: 441
H82: 605
PH: 405
CH: 659
"Awesome God"
found in:
CCB: 17
Renew: 245
"People Need the Lord"
found in:
CCB: 52
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 is closer to us than our own breath: Grant us the courage to stand for justice and mercy as we humbly walk with you among your children; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We come and offer our worship and praise to you, O God, for you are the very rock we stand on. You are the sure foundation of our lives and only one who never fails us. Strengthen us in this time of worship that we may courageous and share in the coming of your reign. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our fear in the face of trials.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have seen the needs of our sisters and brothers and we have failed to act. We have feared for our reputations and worried about our images. We have thought more about what we might lose than what others are already suffering. Forgive us and empower us to stand with courage alongside those in need. Amen.
Leader: God graciously invites us all to let go of our pasts and move forward into God's future. God's grace and forgiveness are ours, and ours to share.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We praise your name, O God of our salvation. You have made us in your image and you still see its imprint clearly.
(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 seen the needs of our sisters and brothers and we have failed to act. We have feared for our reputations and worried about our images. We have thought more about what we might lose than what others are already suffering. Forgive us and empower us to stand with courage alongside those in need.
We give you thanks for those who have been faithful and courageous in declaring the good news of the Christ. We thank you for those who have stood with the poor and the afflicted. We thank you for the good they have done and for the witness they have made.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for those who still are denied justice and mercy. We pray for those who suffer from the oppression of others and of unjust societies. We pray for ourselves and our failure to speak out for them. Give us courage to be your witnesses.
(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
Have the children tell you the story of David and Goliath, or have them help you tell it, or tell them the story (depending on how much they know about the story). Then talk to them about how David must have been afraid in spite of his brave talk. He may have done some scary things before, but he had never fought a giant. Talk about how it is scary sometimes to do the right thing, but God is always with us and will help us.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
Open Your Hearts
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
Object: a paper sack and some marbles
Good morning, boys and girls! I want you to play a little game with me today. I'd like to see if you can toss these marbles into this sack. (show the sack and the marbles) Here is a marble for each of you. I will hold the sack, and you toss the marbles into the sack. (Give each of the children a marble and then hold the sack for them but make sure that the sack is closed.) How come none of you are able to toss a marble into the sack? (let them answer) Yes, of course. You can't get the marble into the sack if the sack is closed. Let's try it again with the sack open. (open the sack and let them toss the marbles in)
Saint Paul tells us in the Bible that we should "open our hearts." What do you think he means by that? (let them answer) He means that we should be open with each other by listening to each other and sharing our own thoughts and feelings with each other. It means being honest with each other and not dishonest. It means always telling the truth and not lying to each other. Just like it was easy for the marbles to go into the sack when it was open and impossible for them to go in when it was closed, so it is with us. If we are open with each other, we can hear what the other person tells us and be concerned about them. Isn't that a good thing to do? (let them answer)
Let's ask God to help us keep our hearts open so we can hear what other people say to us and care about what they need.
Prayer: Dear God, help us always to have "open hearts" so we can hear what other people say to us and be the kind of caring people that you want us to be. Amen.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, June 24, 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.
We are so enamored of David's unlikely victory that it becomes tempting for us to use it as an analogy -- and even a template -- for any modern situation that involves a battle against overwhelming odds... like the deteriorating civil war in Syria, for example. The ragtag forces fighting against the Assad regime and its well-armed military are (like David) hopelessly outgunned -- and Syrian government forces have been laying siege to towns that harbor the rebels and even engaging in wholesale slaughter of civilians. Yet we want to believe that, like David, they will ultimately prevail. But in this installment of The Immediate Word, new team member Leah Lonsbury suggests that by focusing on the outcome of the battle -- on David's "lucky shot" that fells the giant -- we may be missing the real message that this familiar story provides for our lives: the importance of not being paralyzed by fear and of having the courage to face up to the battle and tangle with the demons and evil that confront us... even in the face of overwhelming firepower that we think is more than we can handle. Leah points out that the key verse of the pericope is not necessarily the final one (which informs us of the outcome of the battle), but rather the penultimate one: "When the Philistine drew nearer to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:48). It is when we open our hearts to God and draw on the strength of faith -- even when giving in to fear and curling up into the fetal position seems the most reasonable response -- that we can be vessels of God's work in the world.
Team member Mary Austin shares some additional thoughts on the gospel lesson, and on how the disciples -- and how we -- react to the storms that surround us. Like the alarmed disciples, we may ask God the same question that many Syrians would pose to the international community: "Do you not care that we are perishing?" But Mary notes that God has the same power over our figurative storms of life that Jesus had in literally stilling a storm: a power mightier than anything that this world can conjure.
Running Quickly into Battle... with Five Smooth Stones?
by Leah Lonsbury
1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23) 32-49; 2 Corinthians 6:1-13
It can be hard to see the light of God's salvation in the darkness of Paul's list of the many and varied ways he is suffering. "Afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, [and] hunger" aren't generally what we envision when we imagine what God's deliverance and redemption might be like.
And then there's David -- so young, so handsome, so... doomed to fail (by the world's standards). Where and how does God's salvation break into his story? Is it in the hardness of that river stone that he throws? Is it in his spot-on aim, or the one chink in Goliath's armor -- his exposed forehead? Or, is God's salvation finding David, Paul, and each one of us in ways that are less obvious, conventional, and one-sided?
How would our stories read differently if the focus was less on that one bright and flashy saving moment and more on God's steadfast faithfulness to our salvation? And what part do we have to play in God's salvation story? What does it require of us -- decisive and victorious action at a key moment, or the willingness to run quickly into battle armed only with five smooth stones? How do we participate in the breaking in of God's light in our lives?
This week's readings from 1 Samuel and 2 Corinthians invite us, in Paul's words, to open our hearts wide and to welcome God's saving power with our own salvation living. This is how the light breaks forth in the darkness, how rejoicing grows out of sorrow, and how life breaks forth from death. This is how young, doomed-to-fail David really conquers Goliath.
THE WORLD
It can be hard, beyond hard, to see the light of God's salvation in the news reports coming in from Syria. At least 10,000 Syrians have been killed in the last fifteen months of conflict, hundreds even after the ceasefire called by the United Nations in mid-April. Homes and cities are being destroyed, and women and children make up a significant number of the recorded casualties. An estimated 95,000 Syrian refugees have fled to Jordan; 24,000 have found their way to Turkey. An unknown number have crossed into Lebanon.
So much chaos, so much loss, so much darkness.
Amnesty International researcher Donatella Rovera recently returned from Syria and compiled a video (http://www.amnestyusa.org/research/reports/deadly-reprisals-deliberate-killings-and-other-abuses-by-syria-s-armed-forces) of the footage she collected and her eyewitness accounts of the situation on the ground there. In it, Rovera shares how every person she met asked some version of the question "Why doesn't the international community do something?"
A video (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57452001/a-look-at-the-front-lines-of-syrias-civil-war/) from a CBS news report shows a Syrian civilian pleading with an exiting UN envoy not to leave. He says their departure will mean that the shelling from government forces and their allies will resume. "We need you to stay! We will keep you safe!" he says to the closed window of the UN vehicle. Moments later, the crowd that was with him is seen chasing the same vehicle as it drives away from Homs.
Beyond Syrian borders, Russia and China have vetoed a resolution of the UN Security Council that would leave the door open for international military intervention in Syria. According to the ambassadors of these two countries, the resolution favors the opposition over the Assad regime -- a choice they are not willing to make.
United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently accused the Russian firm Rosoboronexport of supplying armed helicopters to the Syrian government (http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/12/world/russia-helicopters/index.html) -- the kind that are being used in attacks against Syrian citizens. U.S. Senator John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, also brought to light the fact that the Pentagon has a billion-dollar contract with this same Russian company to supply helicopters to the Afghani military. His opinion was that the U.S. should not be doing business with a company aiding the killing happening in Syria. In response to Cornyn, Pentagon spokesman George Little said, "But I would make the point that, in the case of Afghanistan, the Mi-17 is about giving them what they need and what they can use effectively to take on their own fights inside their own country."
Darkness comes in many forms and from many sources in Syria's story and in the conflicts of our wider human family.
While the international community squabbles and points fingers, more Syrians are dying. How will the light of salvation possibly break into such a dark and dire situation? To take on Paul's words from 2 Corinthians, "See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!" If the time is now, if the day is here, where is God? Where is God's salvation for the Syrian people?
THE WORD
Perhaps David's story and Paul's letter can begin to offer answers to these questions as we observe and struggle with the devastation in Syria, the inaction of the international community, and the stymied UN -- and consider our own journeys from darkness to light. Both David and Paul stood on the foundation of God's faithfulness and readiness to partner with them toward their salvation and the salvation of God's people they served. This week's Psalm picks up on this as well. In the Psalter it reads, "But you, God, reign forever; you established your throne to rule the world with justice and judge all peoples rightly. You defend the oppressed, fortify them in time of trouble. Those who know you, trust you; you never desert the faithful" (Liturgy Training Publications, Psalm 9:8-11). This is the assurance from which Paul writes his letter and the challenge he has for the people of Corinth. It readies and sets David in motion as well.
In this week's passage from 2 Corinthians, Paul points first to God's grace that is available and should not be taken in vain. He also knows God is ready to partner in the work of salvation right then and there. The time is now, Paul says. The day of salvation is here. Let's act on this offer of grace.
David's trust in God's faithfulness and readiness to save makes his victory an early one -- and not necessarily the kind that gets remembered and repeated as the crux of the story. Before David's stone strikes Goliath, before he even loads his sling, salvation has already begun to break through for God's people. David opens the way for God's saving power when he goes to speak with Saul: "Let no one's heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:32).
God's salvation comes when David sets himself in motion, when he puts aside his fears and doubts and trusts that God will hold and strengthen him for whatever lies ahead. The shot to the forehead is remembered, but David's willingness to act and risk is when the way is made for God's salvation.
And so the light begins to break through the darkness.
Paul knows the power of an open and willing heart as well. He warns the Corinthians to throw theirs wide open if they want to discover the saving movement of God in their lives. He encourages them not to guard their lives, their well-being, or their affections too closely, lest they miss the chance to partner with God in their salvation living.
David's heart is already there -- wide open to the people of God who are being threatened. He is moved to act, willing to face the struggle and tangle with a seemingly undefeatable adversary. The story tells us he "ran quickly toward the battle line" to face Goliath so that all would know that the battle was ultimately God's.
The light grows.
David opens himself as a vessel of God's saving power and acts decisively in the face of terrible odds. What seems like foolishness is God's salvation breaking through in the young, inexperienced person of David, the son Jesse sent on a simple errand.
And in this very unlikely, doomed-to-fail youngster, God's salvation shines.
It's important to reemphasize, though, that the light breaks the darkness not through David's lucky shot or the loud thump of Goliath hitting the ground. It's in the strength of David's faith, the bold foolishness of his actions, and the willingness he shows to open wide his heart to the saving power of God. This is David's salvation living, and its light is so powerful that it overcomes the giant, makes the Philistines flee in fear, and emboldens the Israelites to finish the fight and put an end to the anxiety in which they had been living. This is what David means when he says, "All those gathered here will be witness that Yahweh saves without sword or spear. This battle is Yahweh's, who will put all of you into our power."
CRAFTING THE SERMON
In the passage from 2 Corinthians for this week, Paul gives those who would commit David-like acts of crazy love and wild faithfulness a list of how-to's. We've already had the list of calamities the faithful must expect to weather... afflictions, hardships, sleepless nights, hunger, and so on. Paul is ever quick to remind us that God doesn't promise deliverance from the vicissitudes of life, but that our faith will give us the inner armor we need to enter and persevere in the fight for love.
Beyond faith, we are to arm ourselves with "innocence, knowledge, patience and kindness in the Holy Spirit, in sincere love, with the message of truth and the power of God" and "the weapons of justice [in] both right hand and left." In this way, the power of darkness is broken and the light of salvific love begins to change things from the inside out, through relationships, in the building of community and connections that honor the worth of each of God's beloved children.
When this light, this salvation finds it way in, then we are reminded of what David teaches us -- that the battle is God's and will be fought without sword or spear, because in the foolishness of faith, power lies in the most unexpected places -- like in the littlest brother, the handsome but inexperienced sheepherder. And God's salvation keeps shining through, growing in strength and light even when it seems impossible. Like in Syria. Like with Paul and his followers. What the world perceives is not necessarily what is true in God's salvation story as it unfolds in our lives and in our midst. Paul writes, "We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet are well known; as dying, and see -- we are alive; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything" (2 Corinthians 6:8b-10).
The people of Syria have no stone that will easily topple the Goliaths they face. Clear and decisive victory seems nowhere on their immediate horizon, especially without the backing and action of the international community and a plan from the United Nations that has some teeth and can actually end the bloodshed. But the people have shown that they are not afraid of confrontation. They are willing to run quickly into the battle, and like David and Paul tangle with the destructive forces that threaten their lives and their chances to thrive and know peace. With bold foolishness they face overwhelming firepower and far more than it seems they can handle. But it's not the lucky shot, the thud of enemy as he hits the ground that matters... right? It's the open hearts, the strength of faith, and the salvation living on the way there that will bring the light that breaks the darkness. While that light shines, there is life amongst the death and loss, there is truth amidst wrongdoing and injustice, there is joy through the sorrow, and there is the belief that hope will not perish forever.
David's story and Paul's letter can answer the same questions for us in our own particular struggles against the darkness, however it may manifest in our lives, in our communities, and in our wider world. We too can ask: If the time is now, if the day is here, where is God? Where is the light of God's salvation for us?
As Paul encouraged the people of Corinth, opening wide our hearts is a place to start the search. Hearts open to the power and faithfulness of God, hearts that don't (in Paul's words) restrict affections or guard themselves against the call of the Spirit to wild acts of love, are hearts that know the "foolishness of the cross." They are ready to face what no sane person would willingly face and stand ready to be vessels of God's work in the world. And that is a start -- a very bright one indeed.
SECOND THOUGHTS
by Mary Austin
Mark 4:35-41
There are plenty of storms to be found in life, whether it's our personal travails, community unrest, or international upheaval.
As Syria continues to be in a storm of unrest, the New York Times reported Sunday that Russian warships are headed for Syria. Andrew E. Kramer and Alan Cowell report that two assault ships are headed for the Russian naval base closest to Syria. The article notes that this move is "one more sign of alarm about the deteriorating security situation there after United Nations monitors announced over the weekend that they were suspending their operations as violence mounts."
Hope for calm in the storm faded as the United Nations seemed to be giving up on influencing a peace process or even monitoring the violence. The article adds that "The United Nations said the monitors would not be withdrawn from Syria, but were being locked down in Syria's most contested cities, unable to conduct patrols. While the decision to suspend their work was made chiefly to protect the unarmed monitors, the unstated purpose appeared to be to force Russia to intervene to assure that the observers are not the targets of Syrian forces or their sympathizers. Russia has opposed Western intervention and, by some accounts, continues to arm the forces of Mr. Assad."
The people of Syria, under fire by government forces, might well say to the world: "Do you not care that we are perishing?"
USA Today reported last week that suicides are now the second leading cause of death in the military. An article by Gregg Zoroya reported that "The most common way that U.S. service members die outside of combat is by their own hand, according to an analysis released by the Pentagon on Wednesday." Suicide by military personnel in distress has grown in every branch of the military except the Navy. "Since 2010, suicide has outpaced traffic accidents, heart disease, cancer, homicide, and all other forms of death in the military besides combat, the report says. One in four non-combat deaths last year was service members killing themselves." The problem is so dire that there is an average of a suicide a day among troops. If current trends continue, the article notes, with the end of the war in Iraq suicide may outpace combat deaths. "There were 154 confirmed or suspected suicides this year through June 3, while 127 troops died in the Afghanistan War, Pentagon data show."
Military personnel, scarred by PTSD, unable to find work, struggling to adjust to prostheses or battling for financial, medical, or mental health help, might well ask the country they served: "Do you not care that we are perishing?"
It's one of the most plaintive prayers in all of scripture. The disciples, in the midst of the storm, wake Jesus up and ask, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" (Mark 4:38).
These fishermen have listened to Jesus preach and teach all day and have followed gamely along when he suggests going to the other side of the lake. As experienced fishermen, they would have known that the Sea of Galilee was known for storms that come up quickly.
Jesus does an interesting thing. He doesn't tell them not to be afraid. Being afraid in a small boat, on a stormy sea, seems perfectly logical. He doesn't even answer the disciples but turns to the storm and says, "Peace. Be still." It's as if he's talking to an unruly dog. "Be still" is really "be muzzled." In fact, it's as if he's talking to an unruly demon, as he uses these same words in Mark's gospel to call out an unclean spirit. The original language is so beautiful -- it translates literally as "the wind grew weary" and the sea showed a great calm.
Often we see Jesus pray and see that God answers the prayer, but this time Jesus himself rebukes the storm. We are meant to understand here that he himself has the power of God. God's power over the unruly, the chaotic, is the power at work in Jesus as he heals and calls our demons and sets people free from their bondage. In the beginning, God demonstrates the divine power over chaos. Jesus is using that same power here to quiet the storm, and to show that he too has power over the elements.
Michael Lindvall, pastor of Brick Church in New York City, writes about this passage in Feasting on the Word: "The hard truth is that fearsome things are very real: isolation, pain, illness... losing one's job, money problems, failure, illness, and death. As we grow in faith, we come to understand that even though such fearsome things are very real, they do not have the last word. They do not have the ultimate power over us, because... reigning over this world of fearsome things is a God who is mightier than they."
There is someone who cares that we are perishing, and who is right there in the storm with us.
ILLUSTRATIONS
Sometimes it's not how well we fight the battle that matters, but that we fight it at all.
On the second day of the battle of Gettysburg it became clear to the Union forces that their left flank was dangerously exposed, so the 20th Maine Regiment was sent to a hill called "Little Round Top" to hold the flank "at all costs."
Joshua Chamberlain was the 26-year-old colonel in command of the 20th Maine, and he led his regiment in successfully defending Little Round Top against more than a dozen assaults by the 15th Alabama Infantry Regiment -- but by late afternoon of that day casualties were running high, ammunition was running low, and the end of the line was bent back nearly double with men fighting back to back.
Chamberlain would later say that his situation gave him no choice. With their backs to each other there was no room to fight, and if their ammunition ran out the battle would end in defeat for the Union. So he decided on an audacious plan: fix bayonets and charge.
On the next assault by the Confederate troops, the end of the Union line swung around like a door on a hinge, attacking with bayonets fixed, firing their last bullets -- and, to their surprise, the Confederate troops either fled or surrendered.
The 20th Maine took 101 prisoners, won the day, and defended the Union flank for what would turn out to be a total Union victory in the battle of Gettysburg.
* * *
A phobia is an unnatural or inappropriate and persistent fear. For an exhaustive list of recognized phobias you can go to http://phobialist.com/, but here are a few of the more interesting ones.
• Carnophobia is a fear of meat.
• Bacillophobia is a fear of microscopic things.
• Alektorophobia is a fear of chickens.
• Ecclesiophobia is a fear of church or churches (ahem!).
• Hexa-kosioi-hexe-konta-hexa-phobia is the fear of the number 666.
• And if you think that one is long, try this one: Hippopoto-monstro-sesqui-pedalio-phobia. That's the fear of long words.
The disciples in this week's gospel story may have suffered from aquaphobia (a fear of drowning). Or it may have been astraphobia (a fear of storms) that they suffered from. Or it could have been lilapsophobia (a fear of severe storms like hurricanes or tornadoes). Or maybe it was just the lake itself that they were afraid of. That would be limnophobia (a fear of lakes).
One might wonder, however, if a fear of drowning was really all that unreasonable if you are in a first-century fishing boat in the middle of a huge lake during a violent storm.
* * *
The image of carefree children growing up without a worry may not be realistic. A 1986 survey by Kaoru Yamamoto, an educational psychologist at the University of Colorado, found the "top 20" troubles of elementary-aged schoolchildren around the world. The list, with their greatest fear first and in descending order:
1. Losing a parent
2. Going blind
3. Academic retainment
4. Wetting pants in class
5. Parental fights
6. Caught in theft
7. Suspected of lying
8. Poor report card
9. Sent to principal
10. Having an operation
11. Getting lost
12. Ridiculed in class
13. Moving to a new school
14. Scary dream
15. Not making 100 on a test
16. Picked last on a team
17. Losing in a game
18. Giving a class report
19. Going to a dentist
20. New baby
(Copyright 1989 Pediatrics for Parents, Inc. Copyright 2004 Gale Group)
After reading this list one is reminded of the old saying that "sometimes God calms the storm, and sometimes God calms the child."
* * *
I think that the two most beautiful phrases in the English language are these: "I'll go with you" and "I'm on my way."
When I was a child, my parents would often drop my siblings and me off at my great grandparents' farm while they visited other relatives in their southern Indiana hometown. It might have been fun, except that grandma's only indoor plumbing was in the kitchen. The bathroom was outside, across the yard. And patrolling the yard was her rooster, Tom Jones. Tom Jones was big and mean, and he would chase children, other roosters, and even dogs that came into the yard. I was terrified of him.
One day when I was about six years old, I found myself standing at the back door, looking through the screen, and desperately needing to get to the privy, but afraid of the monster rooster that lurked somewhere out of sight in the backyard. I was near panic, frozen with fear, and flooded with despair... and I began to cry.
Then I felt my great-grandma's hand on my shoulder and she said, "Come on, Dean. I'll go with you." Panic subsided. Fear vanished. Despair evaporated. All because my little, round, aged great-grandma knew four of the most beautiful words in the English language.
How often I heard those words as a child or youth, and how I still value them today.
Dad, I had an accident in the car. "I'm on my way."
I have to go to the doctor's office for my diagnosis. "I'll go with you."
I need help. "I'm on my way."
I'm afraid. "I'll go with you."
-- Dean Feldmeyer
* * *
Speaking of dealing with a difficult, scary situation, here are one wag's steps for catching a porcupine:
1. Find a large metal washtub.
2. Approach porcupine from the rear, being careful of the tail.
3. Drop washtub over porcupine.
4. Sit on washtub while figuring out what to do next.
* * *
Hard Times Come Again No More
by Stephen Foster
Let us pause in life's pleasures and count its many tears,
While we all sup sorrow with the poor;
There's a song that will linger forever in our ears;
Oh, hard times come again no more.
Chorus:
'Tis the song, the sigh of the weary,
Hard times, hard times come again no more
Many days you have lingered around my cabin door;
Oh, hard times come again no more.
While we seek mirth and beauty and music light and gay,
There are frail forms fainting at the door;
Though their voices are silent, their pleading looks will say
Oh, hard times come again no more.
(Chorus)
There's a pale drooping maiden who toils her life away,
With a worn heart whose better days are o'er:
Though her voice would be merry, 'tis sighing all the day,
Oh, hard times come again no more.
(Chorus)
'Tis a sigh that is wafted across the troubled wave,
'Tis a wail that is heard upon the shore,
'Tis a dirge that is murmured around the lowly grave,
Oh, hard times come again no more.
(Chorus)
Two excellent renderings of this song on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YrfLnlrquo and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyV60kTvEFE
Sheet music is also available online at no cost, as this song is in the public domain:
http://www.free-scores.com/download-sheet-music.php?pdf=410
* * *
E.Y. "Yip" Harburg worked in his family's appliance store in New York City, and he hated it. What he really wanted to do was write song lyrics. He even wrote to the most famous lyricist in the world, Ira Gershwin, and asked for advice, but Gershwin wasn't very supportive.
Then in 1929 the Great Depression hit, and Harburg lost his store and found himself $70,000 in debt. He wrote to Gershwin again and sent him some examples of his lyrics, and Ira agreed that he had nothing to lose by trying his hand at songwriting. He introduced Yip to a couple of composers, and the first song he wrote with them became not only a hit but the anthem of the Great Depression:
Once I built a railroad, I made it run, made it race against time.
Once I built a railroad; now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once I built a tower up to the sun, brick and rivet and lime;
Once I built a tower; now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once in khaki suits, gee, we looked swell,
Full of that Yankee Doodly Dum,
Half a million boots went slogging through Hell,
And I was the kid with the drum!
Say, don't you remember, they called me Al; it was Al all the time.
Why don't you remember, I'm your pal? Buddy, can you spare a dime?
Yip Harburg went on to write "April in Paris," "Paper Moon," and all of the songs for The Wizard of Oz, including "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." Ironically, it was the Great Depression that launched one of America's most gifted and successful songwriters.
The two most famous recordings of "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime" were sung by Rudy Vallee and Bing Crosby, though some good contemporary versions are also available by Dr. John and Tom Waits. Here's Crosby's version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovndTa7hQDE&feature=related
* * *
As of this writing, Rev. Fred Luter is expected to be elected the next president of the Southern Baptist Convention, and the first African-American to hold that position (). A number of years ago he was asked by then-president James Merritt to preach at a pre-conference event. Merritt, who had never met Luter, invited him in order to show diversity in the denomination. Luter so captivated the conventioneers with his oratory skills that invitations were extended to him to preach nationwide.
As Luter's reputation grew, the members of his congregation, Franklin Avenue Baptist Church located in New Orleans' 9th Ward, expected him to accept a position at a larger and more affluent church. To their continuing dismay, Luter remained an obedient servant to the first church he ever pastored.
After Hurricane Katrina the church was destroyed and the parishioners were scattered across the city. Rather than give in to the futility of rebuilding, Luter began driving the circuit across the city, holding services wherever his people were currently located. In speaking of the tragedy to the Baptist Press, Luter said, "Life is like a vapor on this side of eternity. What you have today could be gone tomorrow. You can't put your trust in earthly things."
David had many faults, as any mortal does. In time, I am sure, we will find this to be true about Luter. But Luter, like David, has the attributes of leadership, commitment, and vision. David has passed on like a vapor, as Luter will one day as the first African American to lead the Southern Baptist Convention, but both will have left behind the presence of an everlasting Spirit that changed the hearts and minds of people and even changed history.
* * *
The Democratic nominee for South Carolina's 3rd Congressional District in this November's elections is Bryan Lamont Doyle. Doyle, a syndicated radio talk show host, does not currently reside in the district. He previously lived in the district when he ran for the seat in 2010. But because of redistricting as a result of the census, his residence in now outside of the original district lines. He has no desire to relocate to the demographic area he is choosing to represent, and federal law does not prohibit someone from living outside the district to compete for the office.
On a similarly related matter, South Carolina law prohibits a convicted felon from holding a state office but not a federal office. Doyle is a convicted felon. He was convicted in 2003 on six counts of fraud and making false statements, resulting in a thirty-month prison sentence. He fraudulently billed Medicare for $503,000 in wheelchairs and cushion seats. As a part of his sentence he has to repay the federal government half of the stolen money, at $250 a month based on his income.
When Dick Harpootlian, the chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party, was asked why a convicted felon was allowed to appear on the slate of candidates seeking to serve in the United States House of Representatives, he replied: "He's legally qualified, A. And B, we're sending him to Washington, where fraud is a way of life. So I certainly don't think it's a disqualifier."
David was selected by Saul for his skills as a leader. David's acts of treachery were not viewed as qualifiers for the office he held as king; but instead they were always something to be looked upon with shame and humiliation. It seems we have lost sight of the biblical message when being schooled in fraud is seen as a leadership trait to be admired.
* * *
With the change in demographics as recorded in the last census, the state of South Carolina has received an additional seat in the United States House of Representatives. There were numerous candidates who sought to represent the newly created 7th Congressional District.
To secure victory in a South Carolina primary, a candidate needs half the vote plus one. If this does not occur, the two top qualifiers compete in a runoff election. Former Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer was the favorite to be placed on the November ballot; but with so many Republican candidates running in the primary, it was expected that Bauer would have to secure the nomination in a runoff election. And this will be the case, as he received only 32% of the vote in last week's primary.
The media has already declared Bauer as the GOP candidate in November based on his name recognition. As the state's former lieutenant governor, his name has been before the people for years. But even more telling is that Bauer has been front page news for the last several months. You see, Bauer had to resign from office after being convicted on ethics violations and campaign finance violations.
In South Carolina the governor and lieutenant governor have independent campaigns and are elected separately; they do not run together on a mutual ticket. At the beginning of his statewide campaign, Bauer, falsified the financial contributions that were made to him. As this was in the early stages, big donors withheld their money to see who would be the front-runner in the race. Bauer claimed a large (but falsified) number to portray that he had the support of the people (as their small contributions added up to a large sum). One of the ways he did this was (being a very wealthy businessman) by giving individuals his own money in order for them to give back to his campaign. Potential candidates, unable to match Bauer's early campaign financial lead, withdrew from the election. The large donors, now considering Bauer the front-runner, contributed to his campaign. Bauer then took most of their money and used it for illegal expenses such as vacations, clothes, and the regular personal and family items that one who is already affluent seems to need more of.
And so now, a man who was forced to resign from office for ethics violations and campaign fraud is the leading GOP contender for the state's newly created 7th Congressional District. But do not be dismayed. If Bauer does not secure the nomination, it may be possible that his place on the ballot may be taken by State Representative Ted Vick, recently convicted on drunk driving and firearms violations.
David was selected by Saul for his skills as a leader. David's acts of treachery were not viewed as qualifiers for the office he held as king; but instead they were always something to be looked upon with shame and humiliation. It seems we have lost sight of the biblical message when an individual who has to surrender his state office for a lack of ethical behavior is still considered honorable enough to serve in the United States House of Representatives.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: God is a stronghold for the oppressed,
People: a stronghold in times of trouble.
Leader: Sing praises to God, who dwells in Zion.
People: Declare God's deeds among the peoples.
Leader: Be gracious to us, O God.
People: So that we may recount all your praises.
OR
Leader: Come, let us trust in our God.
People: In God we trust and are not afraid.
Leader: God goes with us to stand for what is right.
People: In God we find the courage to face the wrong.
Leader: God delights in the ways of justice and mercy.
People: In humility we will walk in God's ways.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"Praise to the Lord, the Almighty"
found in:
UMH: 139
H82: 390
AAHH: 117
NNBH: 2
NCH: 22
CH: 25
ELA: 858/859
Renew: 57
"Give to the Winds Thy Fears"
found in:
UMH: 129
PH: 286
"Be Still, My Soul"
found in:
UMH: 534
AAHH: 135
NNBH: 263
NCH: 488
CH: 566
"Lord, You Give the Great Commission"
found in:
UMH: 584
H82: 528
PH: 429
CH: 459
ELA: 579
Renew: 105
"How Firm a Foundation"
found in:
UMH: 529
H82: 636/637
PH: 361
AAHH: 146
NNBH: 48
NCH: 407
CH: 618
LBW: 507
ELA: 796
"Lift Every Voice and Sing"
found in:
UMH: 519
H82: 599
PH: 563
AAHH: 540
NNBH: 457
CH: 631
LBW: 562
ELA: 841
"This Little Light of Mine"
found in:
UMH: 585
AAHH: 549
NNBH: 511
NCH: 524/525
ELA: 677
"O God of Every Nation"
found in:
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELA: 713
"What Does the Lord Require"
found in:
UMH: 441
H82: 605
PH: 405
CH: 659
"Awesome God"
found in:
CCB: 17
Renew: 245
"People Need the Lord"
found in:
CCB: 52
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 is closer to us than our own breath: Grant us the courage to stand for justice and mercy as we humbly walk with you among your children; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We come and offer our worship and praise to you, O God, for you are the very rock we stand on. You are the sure foundation of our lives and only one who never fails us. Strengthen us in this time of worship that we may courageous and share in the coming of your reign. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our fear in the face of trials.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have seen the needs of our sisters and brothers and we have failed to act. We have feared for our reputations and worried about our images. We have thought more about what we might lose than what others are already suffering. Forgive us and empower us to stand with courage alongside those in need. Amen.
Leader: God graciously invites us all to let go of our pasts and move forward into God's future. God's grace and forgiveness are ours, and ours to share.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We praise your name, O God of our salvation. You have made us in your image and you still see its imprint clearly.
(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 seen the needs of our sisters and brothers and we have failed to act. We have feared for our reputations and worried about our images. We have thought more about what we might lose than what others are already suffering. Forgive us and empower us to stand with courage alongside those in need.
We give you thanks for those who have been faithful and courageous in declaring the good news of the Christ. We thank you for those who have stood with the poor and the afflicted. We thank you for the good they have done and for the witness they have made.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for those who still are denied justice and mercy. We pray for those who suffer from the oppression of others and of unjust societies. We pray for ourselves and our failure to speak out for them. Give us courage to be your witnesses.
(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
Have the children tell you the story of David and Goliath, or have them help you tell it, or tell them the story (depending on how much they know about the story). Then talk to them about how David must have been afraid in spite of his brave talk. He may have done some scary things before, but he had never fought a giant. Talk about how it is scary sometimes to do the right thing, but God is always with us and will help us.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
Open Your Hearts
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
Object: a paper sack and some marbles
Good morning, boys and girls! I want you to play a little game with me today. I'd like to see if you can toss these marbles into this sack. (show the sack and the marbles) Here is a marble for each of you. I will hold the sack, and you toss the marbles into the sack. (Give each of the children a marble and then hold the sack for them but make sure that the sack is closed.) How come none of you are able to toss a marble into the sack? (let them answer) Yes, of course. You can't get the marble into the sack if the sack is closed. Let's try it again with the sack open. (open the sack and let them toss the marbles in)
Saint Paul tells us in the Bible that we should "open our hearts." What do you think he means by that? (let them answer) He means that we should be open with each other by listening to each other and sharing our own thoughts and feelings with each other. It means being honest with each other and not dishonest. It means always telling the truth and not lying to each other. Just like it was easy for the marbles to go into the sack when it was open and impossible for them to go in when it was closed, so it is with us. If we are open with each other, we can hear what the other person tells us and be concerned about them. Isn't that a good thing to do? (let them answer)
Let's ask God to help us keep our hearts open so we can hear what other people say to us and care about what they need.
Prayer: Dear God, help us always to have "open hearts" so we can hear what other people say to us and be the kind of caring people that you want us to be. Amen.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, June 24, 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.
