Healthy Trees

This Sunday, we worshiped in our recreation park amidst the green, growing trees. Knowing that we would worship in nature inspired me to preach this sermon. In it, I compare healthy trees to faithful Christians. Are YOU a healthy tree?

Most of you are familiar with the poem “Trees” by Joyce Kilmer? I’ll bet that all of you know at least a couple of lines of it, even if you don’t know the whole thing. Let’s listen to that poem.

            I think that I shall never see

            a poem lovely as a tree:

            a tree whose hungry mouth is prest

            against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;

            a tree that looks at God all day

            and lifts her lovely arms to pray;

            a tree that may in summer wear

            a nest of robins in her hair;

            upon whose bosom snow has lain;

            who intimately lives with rain.

            Poems are made like fools like me,

            but only God can make a tree.

It contains great imagery, doesn’t it? The author imagines a tree receiving nourishment from the earth and lifting her hands in worship. Her leaves are decorated with birds’ nests, and the weather is one of her best friends.

Trees lend themselves to poetry, because they offer such powerful images. It’s so easy to imagine trees as people. A tall, sturdy oak tree reminds us of a powerful man, secure in his strength, possessing great character and wisdom A weeping willow is like a beautiful woman in a flowing gown, graceful and sensitive. And a flowering dogwood – that reminds us of a young girl in her first bloom of womanhood, still innocent, and not yet all grown up. Even the Bible compares people to trees. We heard a comparison like that in this morning’s scripture reading. The important thing about the tree in the psalm, however, is not what it looks like, but where it is planted.

A righteous person, says the psalmist, is like a tree that is planted by a river. Because it has all the water that it needs to grow, it is full of leaves, and it bears lots of fruit at the proper time. This psalm was written long before Jesus lived, and so the water that the psalmist is talking about is the Torah – God’s word that nourishes as it teaches. I’m pretty sure that all of us, though, thought about the living water that Jesus Christ offers to us. That living water keeps us refreshed and healthy. The wicked, in contrast, are like chaff, says the psalm, that useless part of the wheat harvest that is left for the wind to blow away.

The prophet Jeremiah picks up on this image of a tree and adds something to it. Jeremiah says that it’s not only fresh water that a healthy tree needs, but good soil, too. In 17:5-6, the prophet focuses on the person who tries to depend on people instead of on God. He compares a person like that to a tree that is growing in poor soil. “Cursed is the one,” says Jeremiah, “who depends on other people for his strength, and whose heart turns away from the Lord. That one will be like a bush in the wastelands. He will not even recognize prosperity when it comes. He will dwell in the dry places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.” The people who aren’t planted in good soil are sorry sights. Jeremiah says that they’re more like blighted little shrubs than trees. Because they are rooted in the soil of worldly things, their souls are gnarled and thick-skinned. These people hang on to every little bit that they have, like a cactus that hoards water. They live with a perpetual sense of want. When they actually do have enough, they don’t even realize it. Their slogan is “Ain’t it awful?!” Even in the midst of blessings, all they can see is their problems. They are classic pessimists. Their cup is always half empty, even when it is full; and they have no hope that things will ever get any better.

But then, Jeremiah (17:7-8) turns to the one who is rooted in the good soil of God’s word. “But blessed is the one,” says Jeremiah, “who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. That one will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots to the stream. It does not fear when heat comes. Its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Trees planted by the river in good soil are very different from struggling little desert shrubs! The folks who are planted in the good soil of God’s word aren’t afraid of the whims of the weather. Too hot? Not enough rain? No problem! These folks can make it through even hot, dry years just fine. Instead of crying, “Ain’t it awful?!” they state confidently, “I’ll get through this somehow.” These folks are optimists. Their cup is always half full, even when it’s almost empty! Oh, sure, they have clouds in their lives; but they can find silver linings even in the darkest clouds.

What a contrast between the tree planted by the river and the shrub in the desert. What a contrast between people who are grounded in God and people who are rooted in the concerns of the world. It is the contrast of hope versus despair; serenity versus worry; optimism versus pessimism. Where we are rooted, and what nourishes us determines what kind of people we are.

What kind of tree are you? I’m not asking you if you are an oak, a maple, or a weeping willow. I’m asking you if you are a tall, healthy tree… or has your growth been a little bit stunted? If you’re not as healthy as you would like to be, you might ask yourself where you’re rooted, and what is nourishing you. Are you taking time each day for prayer and meditation… or do you think that those things are a waste of your precious time? Are you watching for signs of God’s kingdom… or have you given up hope that the world will ever get any better? Do you expect to see signs of God’s Spirit at work in your life… or are you convinced that those things don’t happen to you, only to somebody else?

I don’t know what your answers to those questions are. But I do know that if you’re not happy with your growth, you can ask God to give you some help. He is, after all, the master gardener! He knows just what nutrients to add to your soil, and what vitamin supplements to add to your water. He will make sure that you get the right amount of sunlight; and he might even prune off some dead branches that have been weighing you down. God will help you grow straight and tall, and become the person that you were always meant to be! We just can’t do that by ourselves, any more than a tree can move to a better location. Trees need someone to take care of them; and we do, too. We need God’s help. After all, as Joyce Kilmer so wisely says in his poem – “Only God can make a tree.”

Unbelievable Promises

I have always enjoyed the stories in Genesis because the people in them are so much like we are. Families bicker, siblings don't get along, and life doesn't always go the way it should. Like I said... just like we are! This story of Abraham is one of those. Abram (his name before God changed it) has the nerve to ask God a question when God's promises aren't working out! Are we that brave? Maybe we should be...

“I love you, honey! I’ll give you the moon and the stars!” How wonderful it is to hear a statement like that! That kind of promise is music to a lover’s ears. It belongs right next to statements like “I’ll flood you with diamonds,” and “I’ll never ever leave you, not even for one second!” Those are wonderful, loving statements; but we all know that none of them is literally true. I doubt very much if anyone could really give me the moon and stars, even if I wanted them. Flooding me with diamonds is a lovely sentiment, but somewhat out of most people’s price range. As for never, ever leaving me, not even for a second… At some point, I will want to take a shower; and then having someone attached to my side will be a little bit inconvenient. Promises like these eventually have to give way to reality. If someone persists in making promises like this, we start wondering if a trip to the psychotherapist might be in order!

Abram must have felt a little bit like that when God continued to make promises without a shred of proof to back them up. (Abram, by the way, was Abraham’s original name. God changes it in Genesis 17; and we’re not quite there yet.) Abram first encountered this generous God back in northern Mesopotamia, after his father’s family had left the city of Ur and settled in Haran. One day, while Abram was tending his flocks and his herds, God showed up and told him to clear out of Haran and head for… well, somewhere. God wasn’t really clear about Abram’s ultimate destination. But God promised that Abram would know it when he saw it. In addition to that, God promised to make Abram’s descendents into a great nation; so great that he would bless everyone on earth! So Abram left Haran.

When Abram got to the land of Canaan, God showed up again and told Abram that all this land was going to belong to his descendents one day. Fair enough. And while Abram lived in Canaan, he did all right for himself. He made a good living with his herds and flocks; and he even had a nice nest egg of gold and silver set aside for his old age – which was coming fairly quickly. Abram had, after all, been 75 years old when he left Haran; and he wasn’t getting any younger.

Abram heard from God a third time after Abram had a falling-out with his nephew Lot. God repeated the promise that Abram’s descendants would be as numerous as the dust of the earth; and that they would own all the land wherever Abram walked. And Abram, for his part, continued to build altars and sacrifice to this God who made such generous promises.

But by the time that we reach this text in Genesis, God’s promises were wearing just a little thin. And so, the fourth time that God showed up promising Abram the moon and the stars, Abram raised his hand and said, “Wait a minute, God. I have a question. This all sounds really great; but I don’t have any children. So far, Eliezar of Damasus is my heir. It’s even possible that one of my slaves will inherit my property. It certainly won’t be any son of mine; because I don’t even have a son. Have you considered that little detail? I just don’t see how you’re going to work this out. Could you give me just a little bit more information?” Can we blame him? Abram has left home and family and moved to a land that he knows nothing about. Oh, he has become wealthy enough; but he doesn’t have any children – neither a son nor a daughter. And by the way – there are other people living in that land that God has promised him. He must have thought that it was about time that God quit making promises that he couldn’t keep and got real.

And admit it. We all feel the same way from time to time. God has made promises to us, too; and they are every bit as extravagant as the ones that he made to Abram. God has promised that through Jesus Christ, we’ll have an abundant life. In fact, that life will be so abundant that it will never end! God has promised to watch over us, so that we’ll have everything we need. Remember what Jesus said? Don’t worry about clothing or food or possessions, because God knows when even a sparrow falls; and we’re lots more valuable than sparrows!  Above all, God has promised us the peace that passes all understanding. Life and peace and all our needs taken care of… Those are the promises that we claim as God’s people. The only problem is that they don’t square up with our experiences! If God takes care of us, then why do so many people have to visit food banks and emergency shelters? If we are supposed to have abundant life, then why are wheelchairs and hospital beds still on the market? And what happened to the peace that passes all understanding? When I checked this morning, the Sunni Muslims were trying their best to wipe the Shi’ites off the map; never mind Palestinian suicide bombers and Afghani extremists. Just like Abram, we raise our hands and ask, “Excuse me, Mr. God, sir… We have a question. Just exactly how are you going to accomplish all this?”

The answer that God gave to Abram doesn’t really sound like much of an answer at all. God didn’t give Abram a detailed description of plans for the future. No, God said, in essence, “Trust me.” Now, this isn’t the oily “Trust me!” of a used-car salesman who is trying to take advantage of an unsuspecting customer. No; it’s the loving response of a parent whose child is frightened by the dark. “How do I know, Daddy, that there aren’t any monsters under my bed? How do I know, Mommy, that the boogey man isn’t living in my closet?” There is no answer for those questions except, “Trust me. It will be OK. I’ve got this covered.” It’s the answer that God gave Abram, and it’s the answer that God gives us, too. “Trust me.” It’s really the only answer that God can give us as we stumble along on our journeys through life, trying to respond faithfully to what God is asking of us.

We tend to forget that God doesn’t expect us to fully understand his ways! After all, God is God… and we’re not. But God does want us to trust him. God wants the kind of trust that doesn’t need a list of detailed explanations and airtight proofs stapled to its corner. God wants the kind of trust that hangs in there in spite of our questions and our contradictions and even our doubts. God wants the kind of trust that says, “OK, God. You say that you’ve got this covered, and I believe you. I don’t know how you’re going to do it – it looks impossible – but you say that you’ll do it, and that’s enough for me.”

I imagine that Abram lived with his questions and his doubts for a long time. I’m sure that they didn’t disappear overnight, despite his trust in God. But Abram kept plugging away, trusting God one day at a time. And then one day, Sarah came running up to Abram, breathless and flushed with excitement. Astounded, he heard Sarah joyfully announce, “I’m pregnant! I’m nearly a hundred years old, and I’m pregnant! Can you believe it?!”

May God give us the grace to live like Abram, trusting God one day at a time, expecting God to make good on all his extravagant promises – in his own way, and in his own time.

 

Unexpected Showers

This sermon was preached on Pentecost Sunday, the day that the book of Acts tells us that the Holy Spirit showered down upon the disciples. Instead of talking about it, I wanted my listeners to experience it! This is the sermon that resulted.

It was dry, so dry so very dry. It was drier than anyone could remember. Not a hint of moisture could be found, no matter how hard you might search for it. Nothing would grow in the dry soil; not grass, not flowers, not even weeds. What life could exist in a drought like this one? The ground was so dry that great clouds of dust flew up from the soles of your shoes when you walked on it. The dust was everywhere. Despite the best efforts to keep it out, it found its way into your eyes, your nose, even your mouth. If you licked an envelope to seal it, even your tongue was dry.

The heat made the drought even worse. It radiated off the sidewalk in shimmering waves. Even at night, it didn’t let up. The day was bright and hot, and the night was dark and hot. People compared it to the interior of a blast furnace; and they stayed inside their homes with the doors and windows shut tight. That was the only way that they could avoid the dust that crept everywhere and the searing heat that never seemed to end.

Since all the people stayed inside their homes, they didn’t meet their neighbors. They didn’t know if those neighbors had children or cats or a dog. Sometimes, people didn’t even know if they had neighbors! All they knew was that if they stayed inside, they could avoid the worst of the dust and the heat. So they put all their energies towards making their homes as comfortable as possible. They installed air conditioning that made their homes livable. They installed carpeting that offered comfort to their bare feet. They even installed multiple shower heads in their baths in an effort to imitate the rain that never fell. Pretty soon, they were used to living that way; and they hardly remembered when things were any different.

One morning when the people woke up, something was different. Although it was nearly nine in the morning, the sky was dark. Oh, it wasn’t the dark of midnight; but it wasn’t the hot, bright morning light that they had known every other day. No, on this day, there were clouds in the sky. And that sky was getting darker by the minute. As the people craned their necks to look out their windows, the wind began to blow. It came in great gusts, picking up loose patio furniture and tossing it topsy-turvy. It spun the dust around in tiny tornadoes that whirled and jumped and danced over the dry ground. It arrived with a great noise, a booming “Whoosh” that was exciting and frightening all at the same time.

And then – almost before the people knew what was happening – it started to rain. This was no gentle sprinkle. No, this was a downpour! The dust exploded into little clouds of irritation as the raindrops disturbed it. But it soon quieted as the parched soil received the healing water. People began to pour out of their homes, caring not at all that they were drenched within seconds. On the contrary, they felt as though they had been given new life! They stood in the rain laughing, their faces turned towards heaven and their mouths open to drink in all the water that they could. And as the rain cooled the air that had once been so very hot, it became mild and comfortable. It felt as though the whole world had been refreshed.

When the rain stopped, people looked around them. Why, there were neighbors that they had never met! Words of greeting filled the air. “Hi, I’m Art… Edna… Rick… Katie…” “Why, you have a new baby!” “You must come over and join us for lunch some time!” The next day brought an even more unexpected surprise. Tiny green shoots were already poking their heads through the soil that just yesterday had been nothing but dust. With the coming of the unexpected showers, life began again.

Does this story sound familiar? It should. That may be a strange comment considering how much rain we’ve had lately here in west central Ohio. But the Church (not the church small “c”, the church capital “C”) is living through one of the hottest, driest periods in its history.

It’s hot because the culture around us is no longer friendly to the Church of Jesus Christ. Oh, we’re not persecuted like the Church is in many other countries. On the contrary – we’re ignored. Athletics and other kinds of school activities now demand the attention of Christian families, even on Sunday morning. Church activities are no longer at the center of our lives; they’re on the margins if they’re in our lives at all. And it’s dry because the Church is no longer a vital force in society. Once upon a time, the voice of the Church was not only listened to, but sought after. Now, the Church is seen all too often as outdated, like a quaint lace doily offered for sale in Ye Olde Antique Shoppe. We live amidst the dust of programs that worked 60 years ago, but are no longer vital in calling people to the gospel of Jesus Christ and winning them as disciples. Yes, we’re oppressed by the heat and stifled by the dust. And so, we’ve pulled back into our churches to wait it out. We’ve remodeled and redecorated and gotten comfortable. We’ve tried to sweep the dust away, but it keeps filtering back into our lives as much as we try to get out of it.

On that long-ago Pentecost morning, Jesus’ disciples were stifled by heat and dust just like we are today. They were baking in the heat of the Roman Empire and choking in the dust of the past. What changed them from a discouraged, frightened little group into apostles of Jesus Christ, apostles who spread the gospel message throughout the world regardless of the cost? It was the rain of the Holy Spirit that drenched them in courage and in power! We need some of that rain, and we need it desperately! We need the wind of the Spirit to sweep into our lives and blow away the dust of the past. We need that wind to get us ready for something new. Then we need the rain of the Spirit to fall into our hot, dry lives refreshing us and moving us outward into the world. When that rain falls, new growth will begin. Green shoots of mission will sprout up where we have known only desolation. Flowers of hope will bloom in the middle of barrenness; and the fruit of love will be gathered from vines that extend their tendrils all the way around the world! It won’t happen overnight. New growth takes time. I planted young plants in my garden just yesterday; and I won’t taste any tomatoes for a couple of months. But I know that day is coming.

Now, I can’t tell you when the Spirit’s rain will fall on us. No one can forecast that kind of divine weather activity. But I can tell you with absolute confidence that the rain of the Spirit will fall one day. It may fall when we least expect it, perhaps at a time when we are discouraged and depressed and feel like failures. That’s when unexpected showers of the Spirit will drench us in renewed hope and fill us with courage! We don’t have to be afraid of the heat and the dust. Go get an umbrella! One of these days, it’s going to rain!

 

In the Meantime...

So, Jesus is now resurrected and has ascended into heaven. And he hasn't returned yet. So... what do we do in the meantime? That same question faced the first disciples. How did they answer it? How do we?

“Will wonders never cease?” That must have been what the disciples thought as they stood looking up at Jesus ascending into heaven. Not that long ago, that same Jesus had been nailed to a cross and executed as a criminal. But then – wonder of wonders – he had been raised from the dead, and had appeared to them more than once! Now, forty days after his miraculous resurrection, they were watching him return to the heaven from whence he had come. Will wonders never cease, indeed! What a mountain-top experience that was! If the disciples needed any further proof that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, they had that proof as they watched him being lifted up into the clouds.

But now, Jesus was gone; and the disciples had to come down off that mountain. And what were they going to do without Jesus? The question hung unspoken in their midst like the proverbial elephant in the room. The disciples had become a group of people living “in the meantime.” Oh, Jesus had told them what was going to happen. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes to you; and you will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth.” And the two men in white robes had promised that Jesus would one day return again. But those were just hints of the future, like the teasers that we see at the end of TV programs to make sure that we tune in again next week. As yet, the disciples had no power to be witnesses; and Jesus’ return was far in the future. In the meantime, what were they supposed to do?

It’s a good question; and one that we ask ourselves, too. We’re not so very different from that group of disciples, not really. We’re also an “in the meantime” community. Oh, we know about the Holy Spirit that Jesus promised to the disciples. We know that it rained down on them at Pentecost like tongues of fire. In fact, we’ll celebrate that occasion next week in worship. But we also know that no one can predict the action of the Holy Spirit. That Spirit comes and goes as it will. We can’t shut the Spirit in a box and dig it out when we are discouraged and need a shot in the arm. Sometimes we can’t feel the Spirit at all. And we don’t know when Jesus is coming back, either. He might come back next Tuesday! But then again, he might not come back for quite a while yet. We are also living “in the meantime” as we wait for the power of the Spirit to fill us, and anticipate Jesus’ ultimate return. The question that the disciples faced is our question, too: “What are we supposed to do now?”

It’s no secret that different Christians answer that question different ways. Some focus on the promise of Jesus’ return. In fact, they’re obsessed with it. They spend their time not only waiting for it, but trying to figure out when it will happen! You know about those folks. The most recent was Harold Camping, who predicted that Jesus would return on May 21, 2011. When Jesus didn’t appear on that day, he revised the date to October 21. Jesus didn’t come back on October 21 any more than he did on May 21. Camping died at the end of last year without ever having successfully predicted Jesus’ return. Maybe that’s because in Acts, Jesus clearly says, “It is not for you to know the times or dates that the Father has set by his own authority.” In other words, “When I’m coming back is none of your business!” It seems to me that trying to figure out the date of Jesus’ Second Coming isn’t the best way to spend our time while we wait for it.

Other Christians are, quite frankly, afraid of life “in the meantime;” and so, they put their heads in the sand and pretend that everything will be just fine if they just keep doing what they’ve always done. But “in the meantime” is a place that keeps changing. In this post-modern world, nothing stays the same for very long. In fact, the only thing that’s certain is that next year, next month, or even next week will be very different than this one is now! Once upon a time, big, bulky telephones were attached to our kitchen walls. Today, we carry cell phones with us that are no bigger than a pack of playing cards. We just got used to email, and now we have to learn text messaging. It won’t be too long before the glasses that we wear to correct our vision will contain tiny screens that will respond to our eye movements and surf the internet! Everything today is up for grabs. No wonder that some people are threatened by it!

But there’s a third option for us – to live in expectation of the Holy Spirit to fill us, to guide us, and to empower us. After all, Jesus told us that we are to be his witnesses “to the ends of the earth.” We can’t stick our heads in the sand if we’re going to do that! No, Jesus calls us to turn away from ourselves and to turn towards others as we visit the sick, feed the hungry, house the homeless, clothe the naked, and pray constantly. That’s how we witness to our savior who taught us to love others in the same way that he first loved us. Sure, the world is insecure! It always has been and it always will be! It’s full of violence and oppression, brokenness and suffering, illness and death. But we testify through our witness to the risen Christ that all these things don’t get the last word. The God of healing, of grace, and of peace is the one who gets the last word!

But – I want to offer a word of warning. We can’t fix the world’s brokenness through our efforts alone. All our good deeds and programs and policies can be very useful things; but they only go so far. As we witness to the risen Christ through our actions, we need to do one more thing. We need to pray for God’s help! Did you take notice of the last verse of the text from Acts that we heard this morning? It said that after the disciples had watched Jesus ascend into heaven, they returned to Jerusalem and got together to pray. Today, we are the disciples that do the very same thing. As we wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit into our lives and into our congregations, we pray. We pray for the power of the Spirit that enables us to be effective witnesses to Jesus Christ. We pray for the guidance of the Spirit that helps us to make wise decisions as to how and where to witness. We pray for the enthusiasm of the Spirit that allows our witness to be joyful and passionate. We pray for others, absolutely; but we also pray for ourselves and for our congregation.

So, fellow Christians who are living “in the meantime,” let me ask a few questions before I conclude my sermon. Do we really expect the Holy Spirit to come into our midst and fill us with power? Of course, we’re waiting on that; but do we expect it? And do we really want that kind of power, deep down in our hearts? After all, being filled with the Spirit’s power means that we have to get up out of the pews and do something! Finally, if we are blessed by the power of the Spirit, are we willing to allow that Spirit to lead us – or are we going to insist on doing things our own way? Those are questions that the 21^st century church has to answer as it seeks to find its place in our postmodern world. And as we await the Day of Pentecost, those aren’t bad questions for us to ponder, either. We are moving into the future that God holds in his hand, a place where all of us are called to witness to the world in Jesus’ name. May we be faithful to that task; and when Jesus comes again in glory, may he find that we have been courageous disciples as we lived “in the meantime.”