Step Curry teaches us a thing or two about winning both on and off the court. He wears his faith out like the shoes that say it all. God gets the glory, but we get God.

Read this blurb from Relevant:

http://www.relevantmagazine.com/slices/steph-curry-im-not-going-bash-people-over-head-bible?utm_source=This%20Week%3A%20Is%20the%20Pro-Life%20Movement%20Wrong%20About%20Abortion%3F&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=Trending%3A%202&utm_campaign=RELEVANT%20Newsletter

(Read: 1 Kings 18:20-39)

Well, it’s Memorial Weekend. The unofficial kick off of summer. School is almost over, vacation plans are about to begin, and our new worship time is underway. While we still have to wait three more weeks for summer to officially begin, Hollywood is already out in full-force, unleashing the new line up of summer blockbuster movies. Whether you are a fan of animation, comedy, or sci-fi action, there is something for everyone.

If you ask me, I think this particular story from 1 Kings would make an interesting movie. It’s a classic tale of good verses evil, complete with dramatic plot twists and epic battle scenes. In it, the most unlikely hero saves the day by defeating the evil empire and bringing down its power. There's enough razor sharp satire to dramatize the true power of Israel’s God, who alone can do the impossible.

Granted this is not a new idea. The plot is a lot like hundreds of other films. Like “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice,” a movie about a god-like super hero whose actions have been left unchecked, and one’s personal vendetta to stop this modern-day savior from allowing a greater threat to take over the world.

Like Batman, the prophet Elijah, launches a powerful campaign to eradicate idol worship from Israel once and for all. And does so in spite of the social and political implications that arise. I’ll admit it’s difficult to get the full effect of this story without reading, at least, the first book of Kings. It’s like telling someone about the mafia by only describing the horse head scene from the first Godfather movie.

So if you have no idea what I am talking about here’s the backstory that drives this epic tale: The 12 tribes of Israel have divided themselves into two kingdoms; the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern Kingdom of Judah. This particular story takes place in the north, which is ruled by the evil king Ahab, and his malicious wife Jezebel.

Earlier in the story, Elijah denounces Jezebel for introducing the worship of this foreign god alongside worship of Yahweh, the God of Israel. It seems the Israelites have forgotten Yahweh is their Lord and Savior, the one who rescued them from Egypt, cared for them in the wilderness, and brought them into the land of milk and honey. This action has made Yahweh very angry, and the kingdom extremely vulnerable.

Throughout the Bible God's power is often juxtaposed with trust in material strength like wealth, military power, and foreign alliances. So when Elijah challenges the power and authority of this Canaanite god, he comes not simply as a prophet calling on his God, but as a political dissenter; publicly shaming the religion of his earthly King and Queen.  Maybe this is where Donald Trump got his ideas and methods to win votes.

The difference, of course, is that Elijah urges believers not to bow down to false idols, or give in to the cultural norms that threaten their identity as God’s covenant people. Instead, he calls them to stand in the truth and justice of Yahweh alone. (Come to think of it, perhaps this is where Bernie Sanders gets his inspiration.)  Elijah reminds us that only Yahweh can make waters part, manna fall from heaven, and giant empires to topple with a single stone. He alone is the God who makes impossible happen.

This is the entire story of the Bible: God’s divine hand at work in our lives, rescuing us, and saving us, and forgiving us, and loving us no matter what. The good news for believers is we are not to worry when God seems hidden or absent from our life. Instead we are to trust that God is there, always ready to answer our prayers.

The key word here is “trust.”  Trust is the muscle of our faith. Trust is the super hero cape that gives us the power to do the impossible.

Elijah, like Bruce Wayne, is just an ordinary human who can do extraordinary things. But unlike Batman, he doesn’t rely on a butler to concoct special weapons. Instead, he arms himself with faith. And trusts in it so fearlessly that he doesn’t just call on God for help, but instead demands that God comes. Elijah is intimate with Yahweh. He knows Gods heart because he shares his heart with God. He puts God to the test knowing God will respond in the most astonishing and unbelievable ways.

Jesus shared this intimate faith with God, too. In the wilderness, Jesus was victorious over temptation because of his strong relationship with God. Both Elijah’s prophetic contest and Jesus’ endurance through temptation point to the same truth: Trust in God alone can and will sustain you.

This flies in the face of what the world powers would have us believe. More bombs, more guns, equals more peace and more prosperity. When there is a grave threat looming, their temptation seems inviting. Before we know it, we are splitting our faith in various camps.

The medieval rabbi Rashi is quoted as saying, “As long as idolatry exists in the world, God’s fierce anger will exist in the world.”  Yet try as we might to stand with God, we all seem to fall prey to idolatry, be it nationalism, materialism, ego and pride, or some other false truth.

Elijah asks the people, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If Yahweh is God then follow him, and if it’s Ba’al then follow him.” Jesus mirrors this same sentiment when he tells us that we can’t worship both “God and money.” Thousands of years later, the message remains the same: We either trust in God, or in something else.

As we celebrate Memorial Day, we might be tempted to place our loyalty to our country alongside God. We may not acknowledge our celebration as idol worship, but when things like national or financial security dictate our conversations, or holiday sales lead to self-gratification and material possession, or when sports or family take priority over our obedience and service to God, they indeed become idols. And no matter how we clothe them, the simple truth remains…they cannot save us. Only God saves.

Elijah's cinematic tale teaches us that our tendencies to cling to source of security that are not God leave us looking ridiculous and pathetic. We dance frantically to appease powers that are not real; we try to ensure prosperity through things that will not respond to us; we look for hope in things that cannot truly transform our lives.

St. Augustine said, “our hearts are restless until they find their rest in God.” When we fail to recognize God as the source of our rest and our peace, we live our lives chaotically, on the edge of desperation. We are tempted into believing sex or drugs, or some other vice will fill the emptiness in our heart. But they only lead to addiction, not salvation.

Elijah boldly asks God to act, “so that the people will know that it is God who has turned their hearts back.” His plea is an invitation for us all to believe God is at work, turning our hearts towards good, towards love, towards God.

But do we really believe, and trust that God is who God says he is? And if so, are we acting faithfully to God, relying on the Divine fully and faithfully... in spite of all the temptations that the world presents?

By confronting the king and his god, Elijah is risking not only his life but also his faith. Yet by his bold action, his faith is rewarded. The lesson we can take away today is this: trusting God with such boldness removes the threats and fears that tempt us to give our loyalty, commitment, and worship to idols.

This is the message of Jesus, who shows us that when we boldly live out our faith, we are able to do the impossible. 
We can heal the sick without the fear of infection.  
We can give away all we have without the fear of being poor. 
We can feed the world without the fear of running out of food. 
We can repair damaged relationships without the fear of failure or rejection. 
We can embrace the dying without the fear of death. 
But best of all, we can fearlessly love one another…as God so fearlessly loves us.

You might say these are the unexpected plot twists and action scenes that make your story come to life. But you are more than just a summer blockbuster, your faith is the actual building blocks of a new heaven and a new earth. And your trust plays a pivotal part of the Good News of Jesus' redemptive work.

To put it another way...God has written the greatest screenplay, and has chosen you and me to have the starring role.

And so, to borrow a line from my favorite movie Sunset Blvd., "Are you ready for your close up?"

“Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.” 1 Thessalonians 5:15 

There are so many ways to take this passage and incorporate it into our daily life. But it boils down to one simple principle. Forgiveness. That is not always an easy thing to do. In fact, it can be down right hard.

When someone wounds us, emotionally, spiritually, physically, financially, and so on, our first reaction is often retaliation. But that only keeps us in a constant vicious cycle of violence and anger. Jesus calls us to be peace makers not war mongers. We must learn, therefore, to not only see Jesus in others but to also learn how to forgive others just as we have been forgiven.

A daily practice of peace and reconciliation can help.

When I meet with people who are experiencing anger or resentment towards others (especially in church or in their own family) I am quick to remind them of the grace that has been given to them. This requires taking a detailed inventory of one's life. It's not until we see all that has been done for us that we begin to see that the same has been down for others. God allows it to rain on the crops of a sinner just as it does on the crops of the saint. 

A good practice of peace and reconciliation begins with looking at yourself in a mirror...naked. Yes, naked. Take a good hard look at yourself, notice more hair or the lack there of, more wrinkles and scars than you care to count, six extra pounds of curves instead of a six pack of abs. See yourself as you are, were you are unable to hide from the brutal truth of life. 

And then begin to forgive yourself as God has already forgiven you. Only then can we be at peace with who God has made in us. And see things for what they really are, a blessing. Only then will we begin to see the same naked truth that God has placed in others.  

God's grace is for all who seek it. So instead of paying back an eye-for-an-eye, pay forward the grace of God which was made manifest in a vulnerable, naked little baby.

"If, wishing to correct another, you are moved to anger, you gratify your own passion. Do not lose yourself in order to save another." -Abbot Macarius, 4th Century Desert Father.

Given the political climate, and the anger that is both being waged and felt, it's imperative that we not lose who we are or what we are called to be. A wise man won me over to his side with one simple statement, "No one was ever beaten into heaven."  Instead we love them, as God loves them and us; welcoming all as God welcomes.

Thomas Merton in his book The Wisdom of the Desert, offers many wonderful stories and words of wisdom from the Desert Fathers. These men (and women) abandoned society for the solitude of the African, Arabian, and Persian deserts. They became, what we would call them today, hermits or shut-in's.  

They weren't anti-social, but instead sought to live a life that honored God, and would sacrifice their own needs for the needs of others. Merton writes, "They sought a God whom they alone could find, not one who was "given" in a set, stereotyped form by somebody else."  They did not reject the dogmatic formulas of the Christian faith, but sought to cling to them in the simplest, most basic and elementary forms. "Their flight to the arid horizons of the desert meant also a refusal to be content with arguments, concepts, and technical verbiage." 

We too should abstain from such arguments and ideas that cause others to stumble. As one elder in the desert taught, we are to remove ourselves from rash confidence, and learn to control our tongues. And, "If anyone speak to you about any matter do not argue with him. But if he speaks rightly, say: Yes. If he speaks wrongly say to him: You know what you are saying. But do not argue with him about the things he has said. Thus your mind will be at peace.

Jesus calls us to be peacemakers. This does not so mean we have to sacrifice our opinion or our beliefs. It just means we have to be mindful on how we present them.  We are called to bear the fruit of love; "abide in love... so that your joy may be complete" (Jn. 15:7-11).

Scripture Readings:  Ruth 1:8-18; John 19:25-27

​For those who might not know me, or to those who think they know me, I have something to confess… I have a mom. Shocking, I know. My mom lives in Silver Spring, MD with my father. She is the kind of woman who speaks her mind and lives out her faith. She’s also a die-hard Alabama Crimson Tide fan and a dye-in-the-wool Republican. She is extremely hospitable, but in her house you’d fare better being a democrat, then as an Auburn fan.

Believe it or not, I also have a mother-in-law. She too, is the kind of woman who speaks her mind. So much so that I haven’t said a word to my mother-in-law in over six months because it would be rude to interrupt her. The best thing about my mother-in-law, of course, is Kathleen, the mother of our three wonderful children. I’m sure there is a good joke to be had here, but I enjoy sleeping with both eyes closed.

Through the lens of these three great ladies in my life, God has been able to teach me about who God is, how God loves me, and what God desires most from me. What I have come to realize is this: God needs mothers.
Years ago my son Sean asked, “Who’s God’s mother?” While my answer was a bit esoteric for a 4 year to comprehend, I answered truthfully and said, “You are.” The look on his face said it all. God needs mothers of all kinds.
young ones, old ones, tall ones, short ones, rich ones, poor ones, good or bad alike, God needs mothers.

In spite of my gender, I work hard at trying to emulate the mothering qualities of God – blessed to bring forth new life; blessed to nurture, encourage, comfort and forgive; and blessed to live with the tension, just like God does, of providing freedom to my children and a safety net upon which they can depend.

But here’s the thing, I don’t like to preach about mothers on Mother’s Day. It’s a complex subject – for some of us more than others. It’s not all ooey-gooey, beautiful flowers and delightful family meals. Your day may include some of that, and that’s wonderful, but there is a flip side.

For every woman who will be honored and praised for her mothering, there will be another who is barren, longing for a life that is not growing within her womb. Happy Mother’s Day – not so much.

There’s the person, either woman or man, who quietly hides the fact that their mother was not much of a mother at all. Yes, she gave them life, but beyond that, their minds are filled with memories of years dominated by abuse and pain. Happy Mother’s Day – not so much.

There’s the person whose mother has died – maybe a month ago. Maybe years ago. The emptiness is the same. There’s no calling her on the phone to get that favorite family recipe. No ability to hear that reassuring voice in times of despair and confusion.  Happy Mother’s Day – not so much.

There’s the mother who lives in a shadow of darkness, separated from her baby for whatever reason. The child may have been aborted. The child and mother may have arrived at what seems like an impossible impasse, estranged and without contact. The child or mother may have disowned the other, creating an abyss wider than seems possible to cross. Happy Mother’s Day – not so much.

There’s the mother who has had to bury her child – a heart-ache beyond belief, with a sorrow that can never quite go away. What is a part of her will always be a part of her, but she never again, on this side of life, will hold her son or daughter in her arms. Happy Mother’s Day – not so much.

Mother’s Day is fraught with a gamut of emotions. Some joyful. Some painful. Some filled with ambivalence and confusion. But the truth is every one of us has a mother. Good or bad, you are here today because of her. God needs mothers. And so do we.

While the Bible predominately focuses on the stories of men, it records some very important women too, especially mothers. And so I’d like to briefly acknowledge a few that stand out for me.

• Eve – the mother of all humanity. She births Cain and Abel and suffers intense grief when Cain murders his brother. She teaches us that birthing children will be painful on so many levels.
• Sarah – Abraham’s wife, who was originally barren, but who in her old age, conceived and delivered a son, Isaac, making Abraham the father of the Jewish nation. She reminds us of the power of God’s promised covenant.
• Jochebed – the mother of Moses, Aaron and Miriam. God used her children to free the Hebrew people from their 400 years of slavery, and takes them to the Promised Land. She teaches us that motherhood and freedom are worth taking the risk.
• Hannah – the mother of Samuel the prophet. She, too, like several other mothers in the scriptures suffered years of barrenness. Out of her intense grief she prayed for a son, promising God she would give him back for God’s service. Samuel is given over to Eli as a young boy to become a priest. Through her, God reveals great wisdom and warnings to humanity.
• Bathsheba – the object of King David’s lust. A son is born out of that sinful union, but God is so displeased, that the child is struck dead. Their next son is Solomon, who became Israel’s greatest king. Through this blemished woman, David’s bloodline begets the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ.
• Mary – the blessed mother of all. She, like Eve, is the mother of life. A new life, and a new creation, will come through her Son. Unwed and barely old enough to have children, she is the most honored mother in the Bible. Her purity is highly favored by God, who entrusts her to carry and care for the Savior of the World. Mary is the example of righteous, self-giving love.

It should be mentioned that these women are not perfect. But they are used by God to accomplish God’s purposes, in spite of their flaws. They learned to be faithful, to trust God, to walk with God, even through the darkest of times. In spite of the male dominated society in which they live, these mothers break the rules and defy all expectations. God works through them to turn the world upside down. What they teach us is simple: God needs more mothers like them; mothers like you and me.

I am not suggesting that to qualify for this role, all women must be pregnant or that men need to become more like Kaitlin Jenner and less like Bruce. But God is calling you and me to give birth to a new kind of motherhood; one where kinship isn’t based on DNA. But is tied to a particular bloodline nonetheless.

As his last act before dying on the cross, Jesus says to his mother, “Woman here is your son.” And then to John he says, “Here is your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took Jesus’ mother into his own home. Something amazing has just happened. Something new is born.

Just as it was in the story of Naomi and Ruth, widows and orphans become one unit. Bearing the blessing and love of Christ, they form a new community that supports and cares for one another; welcoming all people in need of a family to call their own. With this new life they would take a new name. And soon people would know them by their love…by their love.

In the 13th Century, Meister Eckhart wrote, “We are all called to be mothers of God, for God is always waiting to be born.” Yes, you and me, male and female, each called to be mothers who carry in our bodies the very life of God. As the Greeks would say, we are to be Theotokos, “God-Bearers.”

This title is often reserved for the Blessed Mother Mary. But God cannot be limited to just one person. God needs mothers, good and bad alike to pick up where Mary left off. If we dare to call ourselves Christians, then we must also be brave enough to bear God’s incarnate love; to allow it to form and take shape within us, and bring it safely into being.

Through us the Divine comes into the world to heal and to feed, to help and to hold, to teach and to lift, to forgive and to redeem all of creation. From the cross, Jesus calls you and me to be a reflection of God’s sustaining love, power and presence in the world. Jesus unites us, and transforms us with his own body and blood, to become one unit; the Church, the very Body of Christ.

From conception, to birth and life, all the way through death and resurrection, Jesus gives us great power and responsibility. Through him, the love of God remains alive inside us all until the fullness of God’s glory, the mother of all love, is revealed throughout eternity.

My only question is this: Will you carry this love to full term?


Special Thanks to Rev. Wendy Van Tassell, First Congregational Church of Spencer, IA, who co-wrote this sermon with me. Wendy is a wonderful mother and a perfect daughter of God. I am honored to have shared this day with her, a true mentor and friend.

"How do we know about God's love, God's generosity, God's kindness, God's forgiveness? Through our parents, our friends, our teachers, our pastors, our spouses, our children ... they all reveal God to us. But as we come to know them, we realise that each of them can reveal only a little bit of God. God's love is greater than theirs; God's goodness is greater than theirs; God's beauty is greater than theirs.

"At first we may be disappointed in these people in our lives. For a while we thought that they would be able to give us all the love, goodness, and beauty we needed. But gradually we discover that they were all signposts on the way to God."   -Henri Nouwen, Bread For the Journey

Reading:  John 9:1-12; 14:15-21
The healing story that was read for us this morning is only found in the gospel of John. A man, born blind miraculously healed with spit and mud. This might be just one of the grosses miracles, but a miracle nonetheless.

The assumption is this man’s birth was a defected because of something he or his parents did; i.e. sin. If that were the case, and sin was the cause of blindness, then the prescription on my glasses would be way stronger than they are now.

Jesus explains to his disciples that the man, like all of us, was born in a particular way, for a reason. And that reason, he says, is so the world can see God at work through his disability. But why does it take a physical defect to open our eyes to that truth? There’s got to be an easier way, don’t you think?

As a child, I grew up in a small beach community in Florida. In our dining room, sat a table my father built out of thick wooden planks reclaimed from an old ship. Depending where you sat, you could enjoy an unobstructed view of the Gulf of Mexico. And depending on how quickly you made it to the table for dinner, you could also avoid being blinded by the bright sun as it set in the West.

Perhaps it wasn’t sin that gave me glasses but always being the last one to the dinner table. Once the temporary blindness passed, I would come to see God’s creative hand come alive. With beautiful brush strokes of deep indigo blues, shocking pinks, and mouthwatering oranges, it was like God was painting the sky just for me. Day or night, I can still see God’s divine imprint in that celestial canvas.

In the first chapter of Romans Paul writes, “Ever since the creation of the world, God’s eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things that God has made” (Rom. 1:20). To Paul’s point, if we can’t see God in this earthly creation, then how do we expect to see God in the heavenly creation?  God is everywhere, we just have to know how to see.

Many years later I moved to Los Angeles and sat at many different tables. One in particular was a small metal garden table that was often covered in bits of food, cigarette ashes and spilt beer. It was here that Kathleen and I began to court one another.

The table was situated in the courtyard. And was surrounded by apartments that, like many of its residents, had seen better days. Yet it was home to many shared laughs and many shared tears, (and yes perhaps one too many spilt beers).

This was a time in my life when I was searching for a deeper meaning of God. I had bigger questions that sought bigger answers. I needed God’s true colors revealed to me. Too many years I had wasted, being disconnected from the simple truths I had learned in my youth. Somewhere along the way I had become blind again. Not just in my eyes, but in my heart as well.

As we gathered around that small, hand-painted, sticky table I began to see God’s imprint in my life again, this time on the faces of Kathleen, Martin, Rochelle, AJ, Stacie, John, Kristine, and the countless stray friends who’d show up at any given time. Day or night, God was present.

It was our ritual to sit in mismatched chairs, to break bread and share wine. We opened our hearts and confessed to one another, dispensing forgiveness freely. We sang songs, read from books of poets and prophets, and sacrificed our own needs to help the other get by. Whether we knew it or not, we fed one another the spiritual food of God’s unconditional love. For all intent and purposes, the courtyard was our church. And that table was our Alter.

No different than the many people Jesus healed, we were an ungodly bunch; broken, beaten down and bedraggled. Yet it was in this self-giving community of love, that God’s truth began to take shape. I came to realize no matter what baggage we carry, or where we find ourselves in life’s journey, God’s amazing grace is always ready to greet us; always ready to tattoo a divine imprint over our scars for everyone to see.

This furious love God has for us all continues to shape my story. And to think it all began at a table, that unsuspecting Alter in the world where God’s abundant love creates space for the invasion of forgiveness and grace. Through us, and around us, God is hard at work.

Jesus spits into our eyes and asked, “What do you see?” This isn’t so much a question as it is a direction. Jesus heals our blindness so that all our feeding, healing, and forgiving will add up to something bigger than the eye can see: redemption, grace and resurrection.

Brennan Manning writes, “God's love, by its very nature, seeks to be in an intimate union with us. With the grace of this recognition comes the awesome and alarming awareness that Jesus, the incarnation of God’s love, wants more than a close relationship with you and me.” God has chosen us, to reveal to the world, what God’s love can do. It redeems, restores, and even resurrects us from the dead.

We might not always see God in nature, nor will we always have a community where we see God’s love thriving. But we will always have Jesus, God in human flesh, who came to be with us, and to show us the way back to our Creator. Through Jesus we are given us the Spirit of truth to continue his work. "Only blindness of a willful sort,” writes William Coffin, “can prevent our seeing the face of the Risen Lord in the faces of the suffering poor.”    

Jesus spits into our eye and asks, “What do you see?” A table or a church? A stranger or me?
​
The furious longing of God’s love is in us all, and all around us. Such a love cannot be contained. As hard as we might try to remain blind or ignorant, God’s love continues to burst into creation with all the fury and beauty of a sunset. Jesus calls us to love one another with the same intensity. As God’s love seeks a union, it’s purpose is to draw us to others in love, so that everyone has an opportunity to see God’s presence, wherever we may be.

The way I see it, the church is to be the face of God’s love. It requires of us to see the face of Jesus in others. If we can’t see Jesus in the face of the hungry, the sick, the poor, the widow, and orphan, then how is Jesus going to see us? We are the mirror, not just the light.

Jesus opens our eyes with purpose. He gives us the Spirit with purpose. He also calls us all to the table with purpose. To be the love of God, so the blind can see. When the table becomes a place of grace, it begins to act graciously. It becomes a place that heals wounds, and envisions God’s divine imprint in the world, and hopes to be one with God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

This table here is no different than the one that’s in my parent’s dining room, or the one that still sits in that Hollywood courtyard. For Jesus said, “where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there with you.” So come and let us gather in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Jesus shows us, in the way he loves us, that the table is not a thick wall to keep people out. It is an open door for all to enter. 

​Jesus ate with the clean and unclean alike. In doing so he radically changed the game. He said, “Eat with me, and I will make you new and pure. I will open your eyes.” So whether you’re full of faith or filled with doubt, whether you can see clearly or you are blind, all are welcome to meet God in our humble community of faith and love.

In remembrance of his self-giving love, we invite you this table and simple meal.
​
(Move towards Communion)