Wellspring UMC; Second
Sunday in Lent; February 17, 2008: “Faith: A God-story”:
-Genesis
12: 1-4a; Romans 4: 1-5, 13-17
One
of our favorite things to do as a family is sit on our deck at night and enjoy
our Chiminea. The chiminea is a large
earthenware pot with a hole in the front, into which one places wood and lights
a fire. There is a chimney which points
up to the sky, and because of the shape and proportion, the draft for fire is
strong, and the fire burns hot and quick.
It is made of pottery, so heat radiates from all sides. Thus on cool fall evenings, it is wonderful
to sit around the fire, look at the stars, and share time simply being
together.
We’ve
had our chiminea for years, and one of the things the kids and I love to do is
tell stories around the fire. I started
this when the boys were 4 and 2 years old.
It began with me telling some of the traditional fables and fairy tales,
but soon they wanted more. They wanted
to hear stories that I would make up on the spot. So I did.
I’d
make up stories about them, myself or their mother. Stories about monsters or God. I’d tell story after story, but soon my
stories were not good enough. Instead,
they wanted to get in on the action.
They’d say, “Dad, tell us a story about a ghost.” Or, “Tell us a story
about when we grow up.” And before I
knew it, they began to take control of my stories. They set up the outcome, and in doing were
very satisfied with themselves.
This
went on for awhile, but one day I thought to myself, “Why should I have all the
fun?,” so I set a new rule. I’d tell them a story, but then each of them
would have to tell a story. Caleb was
older, so he was able to weave a tale of about 30 seconds to a minute, and he
was pretty good at it. However, we
always used to smile at Joshua’s turn, because at 2 and a half years old, he
would tell the same story every time.
“Once there was train. The end.”
As
time has rolled on, the stories have gotten more detailed and complicated,
their sister is now in on the act, and their creativity is blossoming. They love to tell their stories, not just
because of the challenge, but because they are the ones who put the pieces
together. They control the outcome, and
they create what they want.
Stories
are wonderful. Stories are important,
for through stories we convey information, share life experiences, and bring
forth emotions of joy, sadness, or even desperation. Stories can affect our lives for good or
bad. Stories can be lived out in our
mind’s eye or projected onto the big screen. They run constantly on our
televisions and fill the stacks of libraries around the world. Stories are integral to society.
But stories are also more than just
words on a page or pictures in a book or on film. They are more than just the products of
creative people. They are lived out in
flesh and blood, for each of us are a story.
Each of us are a part of a story.
Each of us are a part of a story much bigger than we ever will be, for
we are a part of God’s story.
When
I first read our scripture passages today, I had to stop and simply sit with
the stories being told. Many of us know
how Abraham, the father of the faith, was invited by God to leave everything
and follow, and in hearing this story we are reminded that this is the story of
the faithful. That God’s people are to
live by Abraham’s example. That we are
invited to be so faithful to God, that we would be willing to listen to God’s
story and follow.
It
is fascinating, but not too surprising to me, that it didn’t take my kids long
to begin to want to guide the stories I told.
Heck, it didn’t take them long to want to affect the stories anyone else
told either. They wanted to be a part of
the creative process on one level, but I’m also convinced that there is a part
of them which wanted to be control as well.
What I realize is that like us, they wanted their say, and they were
going to have it.
You see, whether we like it or not,
we do the same with our stories. We like
to be in control of the stories of our lives, don’t we? We do our darndest to control our own
destiny, and if we can’t, it’s easy for us to step away from the story that God
tells, just so we can have our wants met.
And yet, that’s not the story God tells.
That’s not the invitation God gives to Abraham or any other of His
children, including us.
Paul
writes to the Romans saying, “The story we’re given is a God-story, NOT an
Abraham story...he trusted God to set HIM right, instead of trying to be right
on his own.” Let me repeat that, “The story
we’re given is a God-story, not an Abraham story...or a [Tim story, Bob story,
Lori story, Gina story].” It’s a
God-story.
God
is the author, and God is the one who wants us to step into the story GOD is
telling, not vice versa. God needs us to
live into God’s story, so that the story of God’s love would be revealed to the
world. It’s not a people-story, it’s a
God-story. It’s not a story about us,
but it’s about God. It’s not a story
about our accomplishments, but God’s accomplishments through us. It’s not about what we want, but it is about what God
needs. At times it’s a hard story to
hear, but it’s even harder to have told, for in order for the story to be told,
we have to let go and let God.
Paul goes on and says, “The
fulfillment of God’s promise depends entirely upon trusting God and His way,
then simply embracing Him and what He does.
It arrives as pure gift...and Abraham became the father of the faith
because he dared to trust God to do what only God could do...” How many of us are so bold? How many here have been or are willing to
trust in such a way?
Man is that hard...and yet God’s
story is filled with those who have.
Abraham, Moses, David, Jeremiah, St. Peter,
Look
at God’s servants Abraham, Moses, David, and Jeremiah. They became the instruments of God’s light
and hope as God’s people permeated the world.
Look at the disciples – Peter, Paul, John, Luke. They were the mouthpiece of God, and like
wildfire the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Or what of Luther, Wesley, or Edwards, who
called the Church into account, proclaiming to the world that she is not her
own, but that she is God’s Church. Or
Bonhoeffer, Mother Teresa, Romero, and Tutu, martyrs and saints whose witness
embodied Christ’s life and sacrifice in ways that have and will profoundly
change the world.
By
their example and that of millions of others, we are reminded that our lives
are not our own. The Church is not
ours. But all belong to God, and the
story that is told is God’s story. The
lives being lived are God’s lives. The
blessings and miracles, the Word revealed and proclaimed, the vision and future
given is not ours, but it is all God’s.
It is God’s story revealed through our trust, faith, and witness to the
world.
Today is the second Sunday of
Lent. This is a season where we
deliberately reflect upon who we are and whose we are. It is a time when we remember Christ’s life
and His ultimate destiny. The
centerpiece of the season, the centerpiece of our lives, is God’s story. Part of what we pray for, part of what we
experience through this season is the revelation of God’s story to us, through
us, and to the world.
It is a time when we learn to trust
more deeply, listen more intently, and follow more closely God’s will and God’s
way. It is a period of the year, when we
are invited to let go of our expectations, our desires, even our notions of who
God is and how God works, so that God might reveal something new...start a new
chapter in our lives...maybe even write a sequel to what we’ve always read – a
sequel which can be better and have even more impact, if we listen, have faith
and follow.
Have you heard a good story lately? Have you seen a good story lately? Even better, have you been a good story lately? The story we’ve been given isn’t our story. It’s God’s story, and thank God it is. For when God tells a story it changes things. It changes the characters, the setting, the outcome. It changes everything. Thanks be to God. Amen.