Holding On, Letting Go; Sermon on Exodus 13:1-8

 

Rev. George Miller

Sept 29, 2024

Exodus 13:1-8

 

This week was a milestone in the moving-in process. 

 

While continuing to make my house more homey with a rug here and an appliance there, I unpacked my CD collection.

 

It felt like seeing old friends who have taken me through so much. 

 

Beyonce who brings me joy.  Janet Jackon who shaped my youth.  Lalah Hathaway who brings great calm.

 

But there was a Carrie Underwood CD I totally forgot about, and some Usher CDs that quite frankly, I’ve grown out of.

 

It’s probably time to take them to Vintage Vinyl to be sold.

 

But, I came across an old dishcloth that really should’ve been thrown away in the move.

 

I’m so glad I didn’t.  It’s 8 years old, faded, with images of fish, and reminds me of good times and memories, people, and places. 

 

How many of us have an item like that?  Something so worn, torn and raggedy, but we see it, hold it, we feel good and smile?

 

But then we have items that used to mean something, but now they are just taking up space, so it’s probably best to let it go.

 

This has indeed been a week of adding, holding, and releasing.

 

How did our ancestors do it?  The ones who came to Ellis Island; those who came to Louisiana, traveling up the Mississippi?

 

How did they decide what to keep?  What to let go?  What to sell?  What to give away?

 

What about our immigrants and refugees, or those who are currently serving our country?

 

What about when our youth go to Camp Moval or the Mission Trip and they have to decide what to pack; what they can do without?

 

It’s not so easy to leave your hairdryer, razor, or favorite pair of PJs.

 

What about all of us at places like Friendship Village and Tower Groves who made the decision to downsize, sell their home, and move into a 1 or 2 bedroom apartment?

 

Now, there can be great joy in throwing and giving things away, especially when it is by choice, when you know it is time.

 

It creates space to breathe, relax, and welcome the next moment and blessing to come along.

 

But there is the sadness when we must leave things behind because either we have no choice or there is simply no other way.

 

This is just a small portion of what today’s reading is about.

 

Here we are in Egypt, so far from the cool breeze of the Garden or starry skies of Sarah and Abraham.

 

Joseph and his family have been buried for at least 400 years.

 

A terrible thing has happened- the people were so prosperous, so plentiful that the Pharaoh felt threatened, so he enslaved them.

 

For centuries all the people knew was harsh treatment, hard work; breathing bitter lives of bricks and back breaking field work.

 

But God has heard their cries, God knows their pains, is aware of their suffering, so God acts.

 

How God acts is through the person of Moses, a most unlikely individual with a checkered history, a great fear of public speaking, and some insecurity.

 

But you know- when God has a plan, and God calls who God calls, anyone can accomplish great things.

 

So God empowers Moses to engage with the Pharaoh, to seek release of the people.

 

There are signs and wonders, plagues and finally, Passover.

 

God is ready to set the people free; God is fixin’ to pry them away from the Pharaoh and bring them into the Promised Land.

 

But first- there is instruction.  Consecrate your first born.  Remember this moment; remember this day.

 

Make sure to tell your children and your children’s children what God is about to do.

 

And for yourselves, make unleavened bread; bread that has no yeast. That is what you will eat as you prepare to enter into the land of Milk and Honey.

 

We may wonder- why no yeast?  Why can’t the bread be big and airy like the artisan loaves seen at the Kirkwood Farmer’s Market?

 

Because, back then yeast was seen as symbolic.  Yeast was used to represent decay, dysfunction, unnecessary weight.

 

As one theologian stated, when God tell the people to not have leaven bread in their possession, God is saying-

 

“Leave behind the bad residue.  As you prepare to leave behind the past, prepare to leave behind the bad mojo.”

 

This is God saying to the people “It is time to celebrate; it is time to experience a new way of life, so leave behind what you no longer need, leave behind what no longer benefits you.”

 

“Leave whatever is going to hold you back, hold you down.”

 

It is such a wonderful, timeless message.

 

There is a reason why this story has been remembered, retold and written down.

 

Because every one of us knows what it is like to move forward; every one of us knows what it is like to have to “leave behind.”

 

Everyone here has had moments in which we were given the opportunity to let go and let God.

 

But of course, letting go is never as easy as it sounds.

 

Letting go is not like a switch in which one moment you have and the next you have not.

 

Letting go is rarely rarely easy.

 

CDs that bring us joy; dishtowels that have memories.

 

Letting go is rarely easy.

 

Behaviors we adopted to adapt to harsh situations.  Ways of doing things that got us through tough times. 

 

Ideas and world views that served their purpose, but are not the most visionary now.

 

We all, we ALL have things we hold on to that bring us joy and bring us more life.

 

Then there are things we hold onto that can keep us enslaved or bring us sorrow.

 

That is what God is talking about when God says “Leave the leaven behind.”

 

God is speaking to people who have spent centuries being told what to do, how to do it, when to do it, and if done incorrectly, they would be punished.

 

God is speaking to people who have been oppressed for so long, that God does not want them to bring that pain into their next experience, into their new life.

 

God is saying “As you prepare to say goodbye to your past, leave behind that which can ruin your future.”

 

And the future God is talking about?  It is so beautiful. 

 

Don’t you just love the mention of a “land flowing with milk and honey”?

 

We can only imagine that’s how the ancestors felt as they traveled up the Mississippi and saw all the green grass, rolling hills and places to build sturdy homes and grow gardens and grapes.

 

To say the land is flowing with milk and honey is to say that the soil is rich; the soil is good;

 

the soil is full of nutrients needed to sow seeds, grow fruit, and bring forth abundant harvest.

 

A Land flowing with milk and honey is full of grass and flowers for goats to munch on and bees to pollinate and buzz about.

 

The people have been suffering.  The people have been crying out.  God has seen.  God has heard.

 

God has a plan and God has a Promised Land.

 

To get there people there, 2 things have to happen.

 

First- a person has to come forward, answer the call, and be willing to lead the Team. 

 

Second, the people have to be willing to leave behind the bad residue, the mojo,

 

the things that weigh them down and hold them back from celebration and new creation.

 

Will the people be able to do that?  Will they be able to leave the leaven behind? 

 

Will their feet touch the Promise placed before them?

 

Time will tell.

 

But for us, today, as their descendants, as their seeds, we get to remember, we get the chance to retell their story.

 

And we each get a choice, today and every today, to think about:

 

-what it is we would like to leave behind?

 

-what we would like to let go?

 

-and how we can each “Let God”?

 

For that, let us say “Amen.”

Sermon from 09 15 24 on Genesis 15:1-6

 

Rev. George Miller

Sept 15, 2024

Genesis 15:1-6

 

Last week we were in the afternoon breeze of The Garden.

 

Today we are under a starry sky.

 

Whereas Adam and Eve were dealing with the consequences of a tragic mistake, Abraham is living with the worry of waiting.

 

Waiting…one of the hardest things to endure.

 

But first- let us listen to the empowering words of Psalm 8-

 

¹O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!  You have set your glory above the heavens.

²Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger.

³When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established;

⁴what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?

⁵Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.

⁶You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet,

⁷all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field,

⁸the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

⁹O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

These words from Psalm 8 are absolutely beautiful; a perfect way to walk into today’s story.

 

Abraham and his wife Sarah are on a spiritual journey.

 

They are what we’d call in German “einwanderungs.”

 

Or in Spanish “immigrantes.”

 

Sarah and Abraham are immigrants, sooo far from home.

 

They were living in Haran when one day, God appears to middle-aged Abraham and says “Get up and go.”

 

With no explanation, preparation, God tells Abraham to leave behind all he knows.

 

“Get up and go, go to the land I will show you.  I will bless you; I will bless those who bless you.”

 

God says “Get up and go, and I will give you a family, and your family will transform lives.”

 

And somehow, someway, in a radical act of faith, that’s what Abraham does. 

 

He and Sarah get up and go, taking their nephew Lot, some personal items, servants, leaving their home to never return.

 

Though God made this extraordinary promise, it does not mean that things come easy to Abraham and his wife.

 

Days turn into weeks; weeks into months; months into years.

 

There is no Promised Land, no Promised Child, no signs of expected blessings.

 

In fact, there’s a series of foolish, and fear-based mistakes.  And Sarah remains without a child.

 

What makes this so worrisome, is that without a child, there is no legacy to leave behind, no one to carry-on the family name.

 

Abraham’s ancestral line is as good as dead, done, kaput.

 

BUT, as we learned with Genesis 1- even when there appears to be chaos and dark waters, God is still able to bring forth life.

 

As we saw in John 20, even after the Cross on Friday, we can come to the Garden on Sunday to experience Resurrection.

 

So, while Abraham is in deep despair, God appears to him.

 

With great nuisance, the author gives us an important detail- it is night.

 

How many of us know that sometimes nighttime is the hardest time?

 

Nighttime can be the moment we feel the most alone, the most confused, the most anxious.

 

How many here have ever experienced a night that never seemed to end, where each minute is like an hour, and you just…can’t…sleep?

 

That’s most likely what Abraham is going through.

 

Here he is, an einwanderung, an immigrante, so far from home. Nothing is going right; it feels like his family tree will never be anything more than a stump.

 

And into this dark night of the soul, the word of God comes to Abraham.

 

Just as God used words to say “Let there be light,” God uses words again, saying-

 

“Abraham, do not be afraid.  I am your shield; your protector.

You will get through this; you will be blessed.  All you’re going through will be worth it.”

 

And in a perfect example of true humanity, Abrham says “How can this be; there is no indication your promises will come true?”

 

So what does God do?

 

God takes Abraham outside, to see the starry sky.

 

Just as God walked with Eve and Adam in the cool afternoon, God goes for a stroll with Abraham,

 

God redirects Abraham’s anxiety, saying “Look, look toward the heavens.  See the stars.  Count them if you can.”

 

Imagine how God may have said these words…

 

“Look.  See how they sparkle.  See how they shine.”

 

“Trust my promise.  Trust how much you and all the world is going to be blessed.”

 

And somehow, some way, Abraham believes him.  His anxiety reduces just a bit. 

 

He once again is willing to trust God’s future even if the present moment doesn’t look so assured.

 

What we witness is how an ordinary person having an extraordinary experience, is able to navigate the reality of faith.

 

It’s not that Abraham is holier than us, or better than us, but how in his belief,

 

he is willing to “become” even during the most difficult and barren of times.

 

This story speaks to us because Abraham experienced so many delays, so many years of waiting, but as one theologian said- those delays were not denials.

 

Abraham’s trust in God’s future does indeed bless everyone, as he and Sarah become the Abuelos, the Grosselterns, the Grandparents of our faith.

 

All because they trusted to get up and go, to experience the journey, and find reassurance in the stars.

 

Why does any of this matter?

 

Because we see how their story shapes the stories of others.

 

For example, Mary in Luke 1. 

 

How the angel appears to Mary and says “Greetings favored one. Do not be afraid.  For you will have a child named Jesus, and his kingdom will have no end.”

 

Though she initially asked “How can this be?” Mary says “Here I am; let it be…”

 

Why does today’s story matter?

 

Because it is a story that we can apply today.

 

This is a story for anyone here who feels as if they have been wandering; if they feel afraid.  If the wait has been killing them.

 

It is a story for us as St. Lucas, in which many of our founding members were immigrants who left behind their homeland. 

 

It is a story for us a church, as the collective hands and feet of Christ, who have known all too well what it has been like to wait.

 

Just as we have been focused on scattering seeds, and good soil.

 

Just as we’ve discussed coming to the Garden to experience God in the cool breeze.

 

Today we have another image to build upon-

 

Being the body that knows what it is like to wait, what it is like to wonder, what it is like to know that we are called to transform lives, and be a blessing to others.

 

Today, with Abraham, under the starry sky, we are reminded once again that we are not alone.

 

God is indeed working.  Delays are not always denials and being fretful does not mean failure.

 

Those moments we experience those long, drawn out nights?

 

We can turn to God and seek assurance that we are not forgotten and we are all still in the process of “becoming.”

 

For that, let us say “Amen.”

Sept 22 2024 Sermon on Genesis 50:15-21

 

Rev. George Miller

Sept 22, 2024

Genesis 50:15-21

 

Have you ever thought about the Biblical stories we teach our children, treating them as cute tales featuring juicy red apples, elephants on a boat, and a coat of many colors?

 

But as an adult, you look back and realize just how dark…and adult they really are.

 

Adam and Eve can become a story that brings shame to sexuality and sees women as the cause of all problems.

 

Noah’s ark is full of death and destruction, putting the idea into our head that if God did it before, God could and would do it again.

 

Then Joseph, with his colorful coat.  But if we really look at his story, we see it’s about abuse, dysfunction, generational trauma.

 

First, there’s Joseph’s Father, Jacob.  If you recall, Jacob tricked his brother into selling his birthright and fooled his Dad into receiving the blessing.

 

Abuse and deception have become part of the family, so when Jacob has his own kids, this behavior is passed down. 

 

He treats Joseph as the favored son, giving him a one-of-a-kind coat.

 

The brothers assault Joseph, strip him of his clothes, toss him down a well, sell him into slavery.

 

They lie to their father, leading him to believe Joseph was eaten by an animal.

 

The painful irony that Jacob, who tricked his brother and fooled his father, is now the one being lied to by his own sons.

 

Joseph becomes a servant who is sexually assaulted, accused of rape, and thrown into jail.

 

Meanwhile his family back home endures harsh times and homelessness, a great famine and Dad thinking his son is gone.

 

Does this sound like a cute kid’s story to you?  It is very adult.

 

But as we discover, Jospeh has the gifts of dreams, leadership, and wise stewardship.

 

He rises in ranks to become the second most powerful person in Egypt, and when his family finds their way to him, Joseph has the power and authority to do with them whatever he wants.

 

At first, the resentment comes to the surface, and Joseph does cause them to worry.

 

But then, but then…in chapter 45, we see Joseph, who had been so mistreated by his brothers, who underwent so much unnecessary pain and suffering…

 

He cries out; he weeps.  He invites his brothers to come closer.  He says-

 

“Do not be distressed; do not be angry at yourself.  God has been active in my life.”

 

Joseph, who had every right to retribution, says to the ones who hurt him-

 

“Come join me.  Let us be a family again.  Settle in this land and I will make sure you are OK.”

 

Joseph could have continued the family history of trickery, deception, and abuse.

 

But that would have been a dead end, with no room for blessings.

 

Instead he chooses grace; he chooses life.

 

And the family reunites.  Jacob with his children; Joseph with his siblings, and they survive and thrive in the land…

 

BUT…but, the story does not end there, because the legacy of dysfunction can be long term.

 

Sometimes the issues of unresolved guilt and shame have a way of not letting go.

 

As we hear in today’s reading, it is years and years later.  Jacob has died.

 

And the brothers who stripped Joseph and sold him into slavery are afraid that he will now go after them.

 

They are so use to the hurt and harm; they are so racked with their own feelings of what they have done wrong, that they assume the worst.

 

Their guilt; their regret is so great that they can’t even comprehend that they could be forgiven.

 

So the brothers go to Joseph with another lie, hoping he won’t pay them back for all they’ve done.

 

And what does Joseph, the 2^nd most powerful person in all the land do? 

 

He wept.

 

In Hebrew, the word for “wept” suggests that a person is crying so hard that it is a fully body experience starting from the feet, up through the stomach.

 

When we’re told Joseph wept, we are to think of the kind of crying that is heavy, deep, heaving.

 

Here Joseph is, with brothers who assume he will hurt them.

 

And Joseph weeps.

 

Joseph could’ve killed them; instead, he chose to be kind.

 

His brothers also weep and offer to be his servants.

 

What he does next is astounding.  Jospeh says- “Do not be afraid.”

 

“Even though you hurt me, and you hurt me really, really bad, I will take care of you, I will be there for you, I will make sure your family is safe.”

 

In doing so, Joseph is saying “No” to “chaos” and “yes” to “comfort.”

 

In doing so, Joseph says “no” to dysfunction and “yes” to healthy living.

 

In doing so, Joseph brings forth the reality for more life, good life, a life to be shared by the whole family, as a team, as one.

 

But please note this- Joseph is not being dismissive of the wrong they have done.

 

Joseph does not deny that they did some really hurtful things to him and one another.

 

He names it. 

He claims it.

He creates space for it.

 

Joseph does not allow their behaviors to have a hold on him, or to have power over them anymore.

 

Joseph speaks about what they have done and then he finds a way to give it over, give it to God, and to welcome in the healing experience of grace and mercy.

 

Joseph embodies the Good News centuries before we even knew what the Good News was.

 

Joseph is an example of how we can choose to still walk in the cool breeze of the afternoon even when there have been many tragic mistakes.

 

Joseph is an example of how we can choose to be the ones who scatter seeds of goodness and grace, mercy, and life.

 

Joseph is an example of how we can bring the starry sky to those who are sitting in the darkness of shame, guilt, and fear.

 

As stated in the beginning, some of the stories we teach our children are dark and very adult.

 

But when taught right, they can create a solid foundation in how to persevere through tough times, how to move beyond generational pain,  and how we each have the ability to restore relationships.

 

And when we do those things, when we allow grace and mercy, we are allowing God to move into our beings, into our stories, and to further sow the seeds of goodness and more life.

 

For that, we can say “Amen.”