The Shorter Sunday Sermon "Elijah and the Widow"

Bible Story: 1 Kings 17: 8-25 Elijah and the Widow

Elijah has a difficult job as a prophet. Think about it, he moves around a lot, he has a hard time making friends, he doesn't make a steady income, he is not always a popular guy, since most often he is telling Kings and Queens that they are wrong. In this text, we meet Elijah fleeing from King Ahab, who he has basically told off. 

 "At first, God sends Elijah into the wildnerness, to recoup, to hide, and to have some quality silent time with God. But, a prophet’s job is never done, and so God calls him out of the wilderness, and sends him back to dwell with people. God sends him to Zarapeth to find a widow..

  Now Zarapeth is not the safest spot for Elijah, it is the hometown of Jezebel, the queen who hates, Elijah, and Zarepeth is in Sidon, which is enemy territory, the citizens of this area follow Baal not the God of Israel. But Elijah goes,

we hear no protests

we see no wavering

Elijah is obedient to God’s command, even when those commands are taking him to difficult places, to places of discomfort, to places of fear, Elijah is obedient and he goes, to Zarapeth, to meet a widow."

 Has God been calling you to a new place? Or is God calling you to new people? Are you protesting? Or are you obedient? 

  What do you think it would look like if you were obedient?Spend a few moments imagining that story line. 

   "And here, the story unfolds, she is indeed a widow with a son. Her son would be considered an orphan since there are no adult males to protect and provide for him. It seems God’s message to feed Elijah has not arrived yet, or maybe it arrived and she missed it, because she is not a believer, maybe she dismissed God’s message, made an excuse...we’ve all been there. Anyway, her story unfolds...she does not have enough food and water to share with Elijah, but she will share what she has..and Elijah utters to her words we hear throughout the Bible,

 Do Not Be Afraid!

   What are you afraid of right now? Is there a list? Pick one thing. Ask God to take away the fear. How would your life be different if you were released from that one fear?

Elijah says, to the widow your cabinets are bare, but your oil and flour, they will not run out, they will not be empty, this is what the word of the Lord says, you and your household will be provided for, no more worries.

  Elijah enters this woman’s household, and he dwells there for some time, some scholars believer he was there for years. In the center of enemy territory and his enemies did not find him. Elijah trusted God, in this time of personal strain and stress, he trusted God and stays in the bullseye and shares the presence of God with these people, the least, the last and the lost.

  Do you feel like you are in enemy territory? Do you feel trapped? Are you just in an uncertain place? Where in your life is God calling you to trust him?

  Elijah dwells in this uncertain place and speaks the words of the Lord. Elijah preaches, and teaches to these people who are in the land of Baal. Elijah, the manifestation of the Word of God, dwells with the people and the bread and oil never run out.  Elijah sleeps as these people sleep, on the floor, with ears perked for intruders and enemies that lurk in the shadow. But he is not alone.

Is night time a hard time for you? Do your worries fill your mind in the quiet stillness of the night? What if this were instead a time of listening for God, being still and trusting in God's presence?

  In the darkness, in the fear, this community of people who are at life’s lowest points, to people who know hunger, and death, who have no income, whose bills can’t be paid, who have no jobs, and no health insurance, Elijah’s speaks the Word of God...Do not be Afraid, I am here.

  This message is for you, today too...

Do not be afraid, I am here. There are many worries on your mind. You have many things to do, to finish, to start. You feel like you are not enough. With me, you are enough. I dwell in you and you dwell in me. I am with you in the darkness. I sent Elijah to be my voice. I sent Elijah to tell the poor and the needy that they matter, that I hear them. I will send my voice to you too. Maybe, you are hearing me right now. I hear you and your matter. I am with you in the bread. I am with you in the bills. I am with you in all of your lists. Trust me. 

  Christmas can be a hard time of year for some people who are experiencing grief. Many people tell me they don't know what to say. The answer is you don't have to say anything, just be present, send a card, let them know you care. If you do want to say something just simply say, "I am sorry for your loss, I am holding you in prayer." Be natural. Don't force them to come to your Christmas party, but do invite them. Don't avoid talking about those who have died, share a warm memory you have. Don't assume someone needs to "move on with their life" It doesn't matter if the loss occurred last month or twenty years ago, this season brings back memories and reminds people of their loss. And for some, the losses have added up over the years. So, if the person needs time and space alone, give it to them.  You don't have to hide your Christmas cheer when they are around, but also don't insist that they have it too.   

  I have written this prayer that you can share with those you know who are missing someone this year. Feel free to cut and paste and e-mail the prayer to them. In the midst of your business, take a moment to remember those who are grieving, send a prayer up to heaven, and then reach out and let them know you care.

Gracious God, 

  I give thanks for your amazing love that carries me through the darkness and silence. This is a hard time of the year, because my heart misses so much. On the outside, everything shouts, this is the time of joy and merriment, but inside, I hear silence, loneliness and grief. I miss ........... (name) the voice, the laughter, the warm hand, the soft hug, just being together. Hold me gently Lord, carry the light of Christmas for me, walk by my side and remind me that I am not alone. Whisper into my silence; fear not, the Savior is born. Help my heart find peace on earth until you hold me in your arms dear Emmanuel. Amen

Unplug so you can Plug in

"Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes...including you." Anne Lamott

  All of us can be guilty of our feet moving faster than the rest of our bodies. We are trying to do too much too fast. Recently I tried to make an appointment with a colleague, when she opened her calendar, my jaw dropped. Instead of making an appointment to meet with her, I suggested she make an appointment to unplug.

  The other day, I was guilty of doing too much too fast. My feet had barely hit the floor and I was already doing everything. By mid-morning, I had done a lot of things, but my mind was swimming. I walked right by my prayer chair a dozen times. The chair in the corner that I set up to meet with God each day. Somewhere, back in the annuals of my mind, I remembered setting up that prayer spot so I could give my agenda and calendar to God each day. The intention was heartfelt at the time, but the my practices had fallen way short.  So, without a lot of fanfare, I plopped down in the chair. I unplugged for a moment and invited God into my day. To the outside world, I didn't look very productive in that moment. I was sitting in a comfy chair, with my eyes closed, and taking deep, slow breaths. But, inside, there was a great shift occurring, the Spirit's grace pouring into me, God's peace touching me, and a calm came to my mind. Within those moments, I saw my calendar before me, but instead of feeling overwhelmed, I felt gratitude, as God highlighted "his" priorities on my calendar.  To the outside world, when I got up from that chair, I didn't look much different, but I had grown an inch closer to God. 

   Jesus prayed often. Jesus went away alone to pray, he went off in the wilderness to pray, he got up early and climbed a mountain to pray alone. Read this verse from Luke 11:1 "One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” As soon as Jesus was done praying, his colleagues (the disciples) asked him to do something. It's like our phone ringing, or our e-mail dinging, or the toddler tugging on our shirt. What did Jesus do? He taught them the greatest prayer the world has ever known, the Lord's prayer. Jesus unplugged himself for a minute to pray so when he plugged back in he was ready to face the demands of the world.

  All of us can hit the "restart" button. We may only have a minute in an hour, or a quick lunch break, but we can choose to give some of our time to God. Giving some of our time to be with God is an offering that we make, and God blesses and multiplies. 

  Right now, go ahead, pull out your calendar, take a look, find a spot where you can write "unplug"? 

To Catch your breath, you need to stop running

To catch your breath, you need to stop running!

  Yesterday, I sat outside and breathed. So many of us take breathing for granted. We do it without thinking, thank God! A few years ago, whenever I was asked to pray, I would say, "Let's pray" and then take a long slow breath. After one of these prayers, a woman said to me, "I was afraid you had forgotten what you were going to say!" This led to a discussion on breathing. So many of us have a hurried pace to our days. Taking long, slow, deep breaths is not just a way to calm down, it's a way to center ourselves and take a moment tho thank God for that breath. No matter where you are, paying attention to your breathing for a few minutes, can connect you straight to God. 

  So often I hear people who want to have a more intimate connection with God, our breath is that intimate connection. 

Meditate on this verse for a moment 

"...the Lord God formed the human from the topsoil of the fertile land and blew life's breath into his nostrils." 

             Genesis 2:8 Contemporary English Bible.

We can't get much closer to God, than God's own breath in our lungs.  This world changes very fast. It seems as soon as we upgrade one system, another one is ready to come out. As soon as we get our handle on one fire, another one pops up somewhere else. As soon as we think we've got it all together, the gas light comes on.  This is a fast paced, technological world, but God designed some simple reminders of his presence, our breath is one of those gifts. 

   So yesterday, I got home and I sat outside for a bit, I let the dog romp and play and I did nothing, but breathe. Breathe and thank God for that breath. Achoo! And then I sneezed, and I thanked God for that topsoil and the pollen too. 

 

Prayer: (Take a long, slow, deep breath). Lord, you breathe life into me, may I breathe your Word into your creation. Amen

Wild Geese

“Shout triumphantly to the Lord, all the earth!

 Be happy! Rejoice out loud!

 Sing your praises! With trumpets and a horn blast,

 shout triumphantly before the Lord, the king! Psalm 98:4,6 (CEB version)

We gathered in the graveyard for Sunrise Easter service. We gathered in the graveyard, because that is where Mary and Peter were when they discovered the tomb was empty. They were not at the cross, they were at the cemetery. The story of the Church begins in the graveyard, at an empty tomb, early in the morning. So, this past Sunday, the faithful Shiloh community gathered in the graveyard and we looked to the East. We saw the pink, yellow, and blue start to paint across the horizon. I planned for us to stand in silence for a minute to appreciate the sunrise.  The silence was broken by trumpets. Two wild geese sounded their trumpets and then splashed down on the pond. Then our worship began, with trumpets and great fanfare. I knew it was a special moment.  Later that evening, I was conversing with a friend, who told me how touched she was at her church’s sunrise service, by the sound of wild geese. Then she said to me, “Did you know the Celtic Christians thought wild geese represented the Holy Spirit?” I did not know this. But, now that I do, I am totally awed by God’s grace that welcomed us to worship, early on Easter morning, with the sound of heavenly trumpets. Sometimes the best worship is in the cathedral of God’s creation.

I have been researching these Holy Spirit geese and came across this quote that has given me great pause for prayer this week:  

“Jesus said that those Christians who were led by the Spirit were like the wind—you don’t know where it comes from and you don’t know where it’s going. A Christian who follows the wild goose is wild and free themselves. They have lives that are less than predictable. They live life to the full (John 10:10). They are wild and free, untamable either by society that would bind them with lies or by religion that would chain them with duty and obligation. 

A life following in the tailwind of the wild goose. That’s the kind of life that calls to our innermost being and awakens the lethargic longings within. The problem is, we know few—if any—Christians who have discovered the flight path.” from Flight of the Wild Goose 

by Bill Tenny-Brittian (http://www.hcna.us/articles/flight-of-the-wild-goose.htm)

Pray: God of resurrection and new life, I stand in awe of your amazing creation. Forgive me when I rush past your spring glory and complain about the rain. Today, may I follow the Holy Spirit’s tailwind. Awaken my innermost being and open my ears to the sounds of worship and praise all around me. Amen

The rain pounded down on the roof this morning. I love the rain. I heard some thunder, too. We haven’t had warm enough weather in a while to cause a storm like this, so I just listened. As I sat there, in the silence of life, but in the midst of the storm, I was very glad I did not have to go outside. I was safe, warm, and dry inside. Later in the day, I ventured out. The ground was soggy, but I didn’t need an umbrella. As I was walking over to our church, I saw the daffodils by the cross. They seemed to be bowing. “Hmm, I thought, bowing at the foot of the cross!” So this set my mind spinning. There are many storms in life. Some are pop up rain showers, some may be grand thunderstorms. If you asked the daffodil, it probably did not want the hard pounding it had received, the downpour that made it bend over a bit. But, if the daffodil stopped to consider the whole scene, the very rain that pounded also gave it much needed water that seeped into to help it grow. So, what do we do when the storm seems to be raging, harder and stronger than we can handle? Take a lesson from the daffodil, sometimes, in the midst of the storm, all you can do is bow down at the cross, but know that while you are bowing, your roots are being watered.

Bible Nerd

I am a Bible nerd. As I drive, I like to listen to pray-as-you go (can be found as prayasyougo.org). This is a 10 minute prayer time, with music, scripture, silence, and reflection questions. Yesterday, I had to hit pause, after I heard this from Daniel 9:4

"As I prayed to the Lord my God, I made this confession: Please, my Lord—you are the great and awesome God, the one who keeps the covenant, and truly faithful to all who love him and keep his commands"  

I paused and reflected on this amazingly faithful statement by Daniel. I tend to forget rather often how awesome God was, and is.  I get lost in the mundaneness of everyday and I forget that God makes covenants and keeps them. A covenant is more than a promise, it is initiated by God, like the rainbow covenant with Noah and the many descendants covenant with Abraham and Sarah. God begins the conversation, offers the promise, and then keeps the covenant, no matter what I do, how far I stray, or how often I forget, God KEEPS the covenant. God is faithful to me, always.  So, I hit pause, I thought about this verse, I thanked God, and then I spent some time thinking about all the times God has kept covenant with me. This pause gave a little nudge to my heart and I was reminded, I truly do love God, even if I forget to say it, a lot, I forget a lot. 

   "I love you, takes a second to say, an hour to explain, and I lifetime to prove."

Prayer: Lord, my God, you are great and awesome, you keep the covenant and are truly faithful to me. Thank you, I love you. Amen