“Stems of Possibility”

Sunday, January 23, 2011: Matthew 16:24-26

Series: “Let Your Life Speak”, from book by Parker J. Palmer

Introduction: In the last 3 weeks of this series we have talked about how our vocation is the work God calls us to do, with the gifts He gives to us, which sometimes requires us to wait for the Lord to help us discover where our gifts best fit with our life. This also comes to us from understanding our passion and the causes God leads us to care about.

The challenge comes when we go through the seasons of our lives. As we talked about last week, we reflected on Autumn and Winter: Autumn, where seeds are planted which brings new growth; and Winter, which is the time for dormancy and deep rest, restoring our energy for what God has next.

This morning we finish up our series by looking at the seasons of Spring and Summer.

I. Rebirth- (Romans 8:28; 1 Corinthians 12:4-7; Matthew 16:24-26)

Before we get to spring there is actually a transition time from winter to spring.

In this transition there is mud and muck. It is the time when the snow and ice are melting, and the ground becomes a muddy mess. In this time the CONDITIONS FOR REBIRTH ARE BEING CREATED.

a. Looking more carefully- If you don’t know, humus is ‘decaying

vegetable matter that feeds the roots of plants.’ The truth is, the word “humility” comes from this root word humus. If we can understand the connection, we can understand that even the humiliating events of life, the events that leave us with mud on our face, may indeed create the fertile soil in which something new can grow.

Spring often starts off slowly, and tentatively, but it grows with great intensity. The small shoots push their way through the ground, the ground that looked, only a few weeks earlier, like nothing would grow in it ever again. The days start to get longer, the weather warmer, and the world begins to grow green again.

In our lives, as we transition from winter into spring, we do experience “mud” in our lives. Yet, in the midst of this mud, in the midst of the dirtiness of our lives, there is hope. The trouble with us, is that our hope doesn’t come until we know for certain that the outcome will be good.

For example, you have a disagreement with a good friend, so much so that you think the relationship might be over. You do not feel that there is hope for restoration. This is that mud that comes into our lives. We are upset, maybe in despair over this damaged relationship. We doubt reconciliation can come. Then something happens, our spirit softens, their spirit softens, there is conversation. Now we start to hope again. Ultimately, the friendship is saved, and all is good again.

Why couldn’t we have hope when things looked bad? The whole idea of the season of spring is that when we look more carefully at the possibilities that exist, we can realize that, as Paul says in Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Hope tells us that God will work out good from the bad we are going through. There can be growth in the mud covered landscape!

Spring in its fullness is something that is not easy to describe. It is full of life and vibrancy and many beautiful colors. It is a topic that many poets have written about with great passion.

Like this poem by William Wordsworth, in 1798: “I heard a thousand blended notes, While in a grove I sate reclined, In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts, Bring sad thoughts to the mind.
To her fair works did Nature link, The human soul that through me ran; And much it grieved my heart to think, What man has made of man.
Through primrose tufts, in that green bower, The periwinkle trailed its wreaths; And ’tis my faith that every flower, Enjoys the air it breathes.
The birds around me hopped and played, Their thoughts I cannot measure:--But the least motion which they made, It seemed a thrill of pleasure.
The budding twigs spread out their fan, To catch the breezy air;
And I must think, do all I can, That there was pleasure there.
If this belief from heaven be sent, If such be Nature’s holy plan, Have I not reason to lament, What man has made of man?”

In this poem we are reminded of the sweet mood that spring brings, with the periwinkle, the blooming flowers enjoying the beautiful weather around it, and the birds hopping and playing.

Spring helps us to know that life is not always to be measured out, as the season of winter can often lead us to do. Spring reminds us of the wonderful colors and vibrancy of life, as well as the growth that comes from what was worked through, in autumn and winter.

b. The great giveaway- Spring can also remind us of how nature gives

itself away in its blooming. Springs giveaway is very generous, to the point of being beyond what is necessary. Nature, in spring, gives us an abundance of color and growth, for no other reason than the sheer joy of sharing.

The gift of life, which seems to be withdrawn in winter, is given in fullness in spring. As winter hoards, so spring gives it all away. This is another paradox. The truth is, when you are given a gift, you keep it alive, not by clinging to it, but by passing it along.

That is why I am always surprised when I see people being so tentative in sharing and using their God given gifts. 1 Corinthians is very clear to us, when we are told in 1 Corinthians 12:4-7, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. ⁵ There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. ⁶ There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. ⁷ Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”

God has generously given us gifts. Spring is there to remind us that we should share these gifts with others in abundance; we should not hold back. To hold back would kill the gift, not enhance it. To give it away would be for the “common good” of God’s people and God’s world!

Let’s take a tree, for example. Pulitzer-Prize winning author, Annie Dillard, begins with a mental exercise to help us understand how superfluous is the design of an ordinary tree. She writes these words: “You are God. You want to make a forest, something to hold the soil, lock up solar energy, and give off oxygen. Wouldn’t it be simpler just to rough in a slab of chemicals, a green acre of goo?”

From the giving of the seeds at autumn, to the great spring giveaway, nature teaches us a steady and important lesson: if we want to save our lives, we cannot cling to them but must spend them with abandon. That is why Jesus says, in Matthew 16:24-26, “Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. ²⁵ For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. ²⁶ What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?’”

Spring does not hold on to her beauty, but shares it for our enjoyment, and for God’s glory. If we are to be God’s people, and live this life in a way that speaks for the Lord, then we must learn how to deny ourselves. We need to understand that while we have been given the life we have, it is not just for us to enjoy, but for us to share with others. In that God is our creator, we must deny being our own lord, and instead let God be our Lord.

When we are obsessed with bottom lines, and productivity, and means and ends, and fulfilling the goals WE have set for ourselves, then we cannot live a life that speaks for the Lord, because we are not denying ourselves. Now this doesn’t mean that we aren’t meant to enjoy life, but a shared life is much more enjoyable than a life that is selfish. Bees are practical and productive, but there is also a pleasure that is received in their doing what they do. So we too are meant to be practical and productive, but to do it in a way that is pleasurable for us, for others, and all the more, for God!

II. Abundance as a communal act- (Acts 2:40-47; Romans 12:1-2)

a. Hoarding- Lastly, we come to summer. In the summer time the trees

grow fruit, the meadows fill with flowers and grasses, the fields are full of corn and wheat. Summer is not as flamboyant as spring, but is more steady in its being. But summer gives away just the same.

Now don’t get me wrong, I understand that nature doesn’t always produce an abundance. Floods, and drought, and lack of rain can destroy crops and threaten the lives and livelihood of those who work the fields. But nature, more often than not, goes through a reliable cycle of scarcity and abundance, in which the times of scarcity foreshadow the return of bountiful fields.

This actually is a sharp contrast to human nature, which seems to live by the attitude of scarcity as the law of life. We are always hearing of things that we think we need, being in short supply. So, because of this, we tend to hoard what we have, instead of freely sharing what we have. We believe that we need to hoard our possessions because there isn’t enough to go around. If I struggle with others over power, it is because I believe that power is limited. If I become jealous in relationships, it is because I believe that when you get too much love, I will be shortchanged.

Every Sunday I come and preach. Then every Monday morning I sit in my office, in front of a blank screen, wondering what to write. There is this sense of struggle with coming up with another idea, another image, another important message. Again, this is the law of scarcity. When I come up with something, I think I need to keep it, not necessarily believing that a better thought or idea will come along. We have trouble believing that the pool of possibilities is bottomless, and that we can keep diving in and find more.

By embracing the law of scarcity, we create the very scarcities we fear. If we are all trying to hoard material goods we think we need, inevitably some will end up having too little, or none at all. If people are living with the thinking that they need to fight their way up the ladder of power, others will be defeated and will never feel secure. If we get jealous of someone we love, we are likely to drive that person away. We create scarcity by fearfully accepting it as law, and by competing with others for resources as if we were stranded in the Sahara at the last oasis.

Example- I remember a number of years ago I was counseling at a camp, and one lunch we gave the students a very memorable object lesson. When the kids got to the tables there was already food set on them. The kids were assigned a particular table, and as soon as they sat down the buzz started. You see, some tables had an over abundance of food, while other tables had almost no food at all. Each table represented a country: teaching that some countries have an abundance of food and products, while others are very poor. We wanted to see if the kids would share with each other. It was interesting to see how some kids did share with others, while still others were content as long as they had enough; they were not concerned with those who did not have enough!

b. Living communally- In the human world, abundance does not happen

automatically. It is created when we have the sense to choose community, to come together to celebrate and share our common store. Whether the scarce resource is money or love or power or words, the true law of life is that we generate more of whatever seems scarce by trusting its supply and passing it around. Authentic abundance does not lie in secured stockpiles of food or cash or influence or affection but in belonging to a community where we can give those goods to others who need them—and receive them from others when we are in need.

Isn’t this what happens when there is a tragedy? We remember Hurricane Katrina, the tsunami in Indonesia, and the earthquake in Haiti. We see how people come together and reach out to those in need. That is why we have the bread ministry, and the food pantry, and the Pastor’s Discretionary fund. That is why organizations like the American Red Cross, and the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance exist.

In Acts 2:40-47 we read of this kind of community: “With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” ⁴¹ Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. ⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³ Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”

Here is the summertime truth: abundance is a communal act; the joining together of the people of God in which each part functions on behalf of the whole, and in return is sustained by the whole. This is quite different from how most of us live, or even think about living. Too many people are like those students who sat at their table with an abundance of food, unconcerned with those students who had very little!

In Romans 12:1-2 we are told: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. ² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” This passage doesn’t speak directly to living in community, but it does tell us to be transformed to live according to God’s will, and through the season of summer we see that part of His will is about living in community with each other and sharing from the abundant grace of our common life.

Conclusion: It is easy to doubt that the seasons each play their important role in the sustaining of creation. Part of this is because we are spoiled here in California where the weather is usually sunny and nice. When it gets cold, or rainy, or overly hot, we complain and wonder why the weather had to change. Hopefully, over these last 2 weeks you have a better understanding of how the planting of seeds, the dormancy and deep rest, the blooming of nature, and the shared resources of summer all come together to make life fuller and more meaningful.

So too, in the midst of the seasons of our lives, there is a fullness of our autumn, winter, spring and summer. We plant the seeds of God’s truth, and the seeking of God in the tough times of life, and along with that we bloom forth the fruit of God, the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control), and seek to live in community with one another.

If we live in this way, then we can be assured that God will work in and through our lives, and that our lives will indeed speak for the Lord! Amen.