Sermon 6/26/05
The Friendly Church - Matthew 10:40-42
(view lectionary notes for this text)
Last year, on Celebration of Ministries Sunday, we handed out more certificates than I could count. Certificates for choir members, committee chairs, acolytes, staff, Bible study participants, covenant group members, and more – it added up to a lot of certificates, but what’s more, it showed how committed and involved the people of St. Paul’s are to serving in the church and in the community in ministry. But this year I thought I’d try something different – that I would ask you all to help me in lifting up some specific names – who is the Sunday School teacher that has inspired you? Who is an ‘unsung’ hero here at St. Paul’s – someone who is always working hard, but behind the scenes, in the background? Who is a child under 13 who impresses you with his or her commitment to church? What youth inspires you with her or his commitment? What older adult inspires you? Who has made you feel most welcomed at St. Paul’s? Who has helped you strengthen your faith? I asked these questions so that you could tell me in your own words who has shaped your experience here – who makes you love being part of this particular community of faith. Even for those of you who didn’t fill out the questionnaires, I bet you are already thinking of names that you think ‘fit the bill’ of the questions I just posed. I figured I could take the responses, review and sort them, and present you with some names today of people to honor – not people who are above and beyond the rest of us – but people who represent us, our gifts and our talents, in a way that inspires us.
What I found instead was this: by the time I had reviewed all the responses, I found that virtually every person was mentioned by someone else as a person who inspires, a person who is admired for their faith, a person in whom others see God at work, God’s love abiding in them. So today, the message that I share with you is your own story. Instead of reading the names people lifted up, I’m going to read the descriptions and reasons that were shared for why they found a person so inspiring. See if you can recognize yourself and your neighbors in this litany of celebration.
What Sunday School teachers inspires you? How? Why? Although their children are grown and out of the Sunday School program, they continue to teach and touch the lives of so many youth here at the church. They are both very organized and have so much to offer and are greatly appreciated. His empathy for our lack of understanding. His patience and sense of humor and love of Christ. She is the most creative person in our congregation. She provides a wonderful program in MADD and comes up with ingenious idea for her class. He knows his Bible and makes our class fun and you can see and hear his faith in God. He has unique teaching. He inspires me to realize that there are so many messages in the Scripture readings. She inspires the children, provides wonderful crafts and teaches the children in a manner that they understand.
Who is an ‘unsung hero’ at St. Paul’s – someone who is always working hard, but in the background? How? Why? Unsung heroes are all the people who share in the running of the church. [They] share their musical gifts. They mow the church and parsonage lawn. She works hard as the chair for the evangelism committee. She is diligent, creative, and dedicated to serving. He is always working hard to make sure the church looks good and he know where things are kept that other people don’t. I believe that he is one of the most dedicated parishioners at St. Paul's. If there is a job that needs to be done, he's there. He is the quiet "church mouse" that fixes everything. And not only does he do so much, he does it all with a smile! What more could we ask for?!?! She is a wonder as evangelism chair. They are a great pair to offer any kind of help, spiritual and supportive. He is always doing something, anything that needs to be done, he does it, and most of the time with out even being asked. He is always there for everything but is always quiet about it. I know he makes the music and sound work. I suspect he keep the lights working and a lot of other thing that need constant attention. He’s always around when anything needs attention.
What child impresses you with his or her commitment to church? How? Why? She has more commitment to church and her faith than a lot of adults. He is always willing to help out in any way he can. He takes on parts in Christmas pageants, helps out with nursery when ever needed and is an usher on a regular basis. It is so nice to see a young man with so much to offer at church. She is always looking out for the members of her family and is an active member of her Sunday School class. The children in a whole sense up front listening and learning God’s word. Not just because she is my sister, but she has such a love for the Lord at such a young age. She loves going to church, and sings with the passion of God. They are devoted to the church.
What youth inspires you with her or his commitment to church? How? Why? She is a leader in her class and has good attendance. She is a role model for younger students and an evangelist. Like his mom, he always has a friendly sincere ‘hello’. He always makes an effort to call my daughter by name and to say hello. She has a tremendous gift for giving a good sermon and is always involved and not afraid to be a Christian. I’m inspired by the young adults who pass the offering plates on Sunday. I’m impressed by her faith, her hope. I have yet to meet another person so young yet so understanding of her call by God. She just has this spark that is so inspiring. She will surely be missed when she is off to school and doing God's work elsewhere. Her faith in our Lord and our bravery, energy, openness to express herself as a young adult. [I chose him] because he tries to do whatever he can. He doesn’t say much but I can see love for Christ through his actions. [I chose her] because she has such strong beliefs. Even though I may not totally think they same way, she stands up for what she believes even if it means standing alone. She is 3 years young than me and I am just learning how to do that! She is always connected to youth projects. She has a very strong faith and is very outgoing.
What older adult inspires you? How? Why? She is committed to UMW even though her health hinders her. She represents the strength of women in the church. She is the strong, determined, caring person that people respect and admire. I admire her strength, love, hope, and faith in times of poor health. She’s an energizer bunny – always willing to do what you ask if she can. Her spirit never seems to fade. She ‘shines’ with goodness and God-ness, in spite of her struggles. He is very faithful to St. Paul's and his generosity and kindness inspires me. She inspires me because of her love and truthfulness. I believe she certainly holds God as number one in her heart and it shows. As she "extends the right hand of fellowship,” she is so sincere in welcoming new members into God's family. She is always involved in everything she can be despite sickness.
Who has made you feel most welcomed at St. Paul’s? How? Why? She always has a friendly hello, a friendly touch, or a friendly word. He always has a smile and a hug for me. She is always there with a hug and a greeting. She makes everyone feel like part of the family. They got my husband interested in church and encourages us to become members of the church family. She has constant strength, love, and understanding. She is there with hugs and cards when you’re ill, and always with a smile. She brought me as a friend to church when we were in 9th grade. By sharing her experiences, she opened doors of faith to me and introduced me to God. Through her I have grown into proud Christian and I am so appreciative of this opportunity she presented to me. I want to be like her, and be able to reach out to youth. All the greeters are especially helpful in welcoming us in church. I’m inspired by their smiles, humor, and godly love.
Who has helped you strengthen your faith the most? How and why? My sister – we keep each other going. She told me about St. Paul’s. My mom – she is an inspiration in everything she does for people so unselfishly. She has been through so much but never wavers. She keeps her faith. She is a true witness to her faith. She’s in many capacities of the church and a lay speaker. She’s a love. She is so willing to do anything. She just has some way of reaching out to any youth that enter our church, and she has such a passion for youth. She was my first Sunday school teacher, and she is just always there with a smile, ready to greet people. He does so much with the [annual] conference, and he’s been involved with the youth at our church. He tends to understand us and is able to speak and help us because he is still learning about himself, and he has such and firm foundation in the Lord. She never [makes] judgments, and is very encouraging. Most member of the church are friendly in greetings and encouraging for each to reach out for the faith, love, peace, and hope for a brighter future in our lives as well as our church family. They are always confirming their faith and have demonstrated great faith in difficult times. I admire their devotion.
Perhaps your recognized yourself in these descriptions. If you didn’t, it is probably only because of your own modesty, and not because you have not been mentioned by someone, because the list of names lifted up was overwhelming. It reminds us, encourages us in trusting that even when we feel helpless and useless, even when we feel ill equipped and unskilled to do God’s work, there are always ways to make other feel loved, and to share with them God’s grace, ways that are as simple as a smile and a hug, as often as unnoticed as changing the light bulbs, mowing the lawns, collecting the offering, planning a craft for Sunday School. We hold tremendous power – the power to bring others into a relationship with God – the power to show others God’s love by showing them our love – the power to bring them face to face with God by bringing them face to face with us.
Our gospel lesson today is brief but pointed. Jesus says, ‘Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple--truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.’ In other words, our purpose is to act as Christ’s representatives in the world. When others see us, when they understand that we are followers of Christ, they see us as representatives of this Jesus we claim to follow. And so our mission, our purpose, is to share the welcome that we know Jesus would share, to love others with the love we know God has for them. Today, we celebrate the ways that we are already at work being Christ’s representatives in this world. And at the same time, I want to encourage you and inspire you to always go the extra step, always welcome one more person, always love a little more extravagantly, always give that extra bit. It may be the one thing someone needed, and you may be the one person God needs to make it happen.
Amen.