Avondale Presbyterian Church Rev. Dr. Heather G. Shortlidge November 22, Mark 1:29-45."

Transcription

1 Avondale Presbyterian Church Rev. Dr. Heather G. Shortlidge November 22, 2015 Mark 1:29-45." A few weeks ago, two brothers from Atlanta traveled north to compete in the New York City Marathon. Having already completed two Ironman events. Kyle and Brent Pease felt more than ready to run in New York. Kyle was born 30 years ago with Cerebral Palsy. So his older brother serves as the legs for their team, pushing Kyle in a specially designed wheelchair for the 26.2 mile race. But Kyle and Brent had barely started the New York City Marathon when the wheels began to fly off literally. Just 8 miles in, one of the back wheels on Kyle s wheel chair began wobbling. And by mile 12, it had completely shattered. These brothers, however, were determined to finish. At first, Brent picked up Kyle and carried him for about a half-mile. But they both knew that wasn t going to get them across the finish line. Then the NYPD stepped in and escorted the brothers to a nearby bike shop, where they rigged up a temporary solution a rope tied to the axle allowing the weight of the wheelchair to be supported by Brent s shoulder. It was the best they could do in the moment, but it meant that the wheelchair couldn t turn and be held up at the same time, so steering was a disaster. But they set out once again. And this is when something extraordinary happened: A fellow runner named Amy ran by the Pease brothers and witnessed the difficulties they were having. Deciding to forfeit her finishing time, this complete stranger turned around, reached out her hands, and grabbed the left side of the wheel chair offsetting a portion of the chairs weight,

2 while moving the wheel in the direction the brothers needed to go. As Brent pushed his brother forward, this complete stranger, Amy, helped keep the pair steady. And yet the story gets even better. Shortly thereafter, another runner named Cameron slowed his pace to join the trio helping to stabilize the other side of the wheelchair. Thanks to police officers, a creative bike shop, and two complete strangers, Kyle and Brent Pease crossed the finish line of the New York City Marathon seven hours, 25 minutes, and 13 seconds after they started. The brothers later said, Even without a wheel, there is still a way. 1 In today s story from Mark, Jesus brings healing and wholeness to a sick mother in law and an isolated leper. He does it by stopping and reaching out his hands by touching them. Now as a first century man, Jesus wasn t supposed to be in a woman s bedroom; he wasn t supposed to be interacting with a person s whose skin was peeling off. But politeness and respectability were not the metrics that Jesus cared about. Instead, he gravitated towards the broken bodies and demonic spirits. The diseases and demons piling up outside the door were daunting. But Jesus doesn t stop reaching out. He extends his arms towards, not away, from the suffering ones who come. The problem is Jesus doesn t heal exactly as his disciples would like. As Simon and the others start to micromanage their Teacher, Jesus disappears. He hikes to a more remote spot to spend some time in prayer and then when challenged to get back to work, he makes an unexpected change in their itinerary. Simon says, Hurry up Jesus. 1 Thanks to MaryAnn McKibben Dana for introducing me to this story through her blog, The Blue Room.

3 There are tons of people who have gathered to see you. And Jesus says, It s time to keep moving. There are even more people across town. This freaks Simon out. The disciple wants to stay put. And Jesus says it s time to go somewhere else. I have to admit that I m with Simon. Why ruin a good thing? Why change it up now? There are plenty of people right in front of them that need Jesus. But this story from Mark is a tender reminder to me, that Jesus does not always heal according to our schedule according to the way that we would script things. There s a wonderful phrase within the Black church that names this tension between our timing and God s timing. I have it taped to my desk in Annapolis. It goes like this: God might not be there when you call him, but he ll be there right on time. More often than not, I m just like Simon, making my own plans and then getting stuck when God seems to be taking a day off. But I want to be more like our African American brothers and sisters who have learned to faithfully live into the second part of that phrase but God will be there right on time. I know that this congregation has been calling upon God wondering about the future, about finances, about pastoral leadership. It s been a painful journey painful for those on the inside to go through and painful for those of us on the outside to watch. Part of why I m here today is to remind you that in the midst of this messiness God is still working through you. I m just one person but I m a person that this congregation

4 had a tremendous hand in shaping. For you are the ones who helped me first learn about God. The ones who gathered at this baptismal font nearly 37 years ago and made promises to both God and my parents that you would love me, that you would pray for me, that you would teach me the stories of our faith and nurture the divine spark within me. This is the congregation where I learned the lyrics to Jesus Loves Me. and the correct order of the books of the Bible. It s where I learned exactly how many donut holes I could shove into my mouth at coffee hour before my mother or grandmother caught on. It s the place, when my father died, that gathered around my grieving family and said those words that I didn t have the strength to say myself, in life and in death, we belong to God. This church is the birthplace of my faith. So if you ve begun to wonder if God has forgotten you or if God has given up on the Avondale Church I m here today to say not so quick. Because the seeds you planted in my life have traveled far and continue to touch many. I ve carried this church to Dallas. As a hospital chaplain there I helped 37 children die and watched countless others struggle with major illnesses. I was able to sit with these children because of the way I was loved and nurtured here as a child. I was able to talk about the life ever after and bring comfort to grieving families because of the theology that I first learned right here in this sanctuary. I ve carried this church to Chattanooga, Tennessee, where a congregation took a risk in calling it s first female pastor. They had never had a woman before and they weren t quite sure they were ready for one. But while I was there, helping them get over their fear of females in leadership, I was often asked, where did you learn all this? It s another way of asking what has shaped you? Who has helped you grow? One of my responses was the Avondale Presbyterian Church. I ve carried this church to Annapolis a congregation who is incredibly grateful for your work in forming me

5 because they benefit from it every week. The sermons preached. The people visited. The relationships nurtured. I m just one person but I m a person who started right here. In your midst. And I carry this church with me wherever I go. So when you wonder where God is in the midst of your mess, if you question the timing of Jesus and his unpredictable schedule, I invite you to remember that you matter, that your ministry matters. that God has not given up on this place. *** In the early nineties, in a tiny town in New York, a young physician named Bill Thomas performed an experiment. He had just taken a new job as the director of Chase Memorial Nursing Home, a facility with eighty severely disabled elderly residents. And it was a depressing place. So this Harvard educated physician, wrote a grant application a grant application for two dogs, four cats, and a hundred birds. He also wanted to put green plants in every room, tear up the lawn and create a garden, and bring in the children. Miraculously, Bill Thomas received the grant. And shortly thereafter, the nursing home moved in a greyhound named Target, a lapdog named Ginger, the four cats, and the birds. They threw out all their artificial plants and put live ones in every room. Staff members brought their kids to hang out after school; friends and family put in a garden at the back of the home and a playground for the kids. They started calling it shock therapy. None of this was without its bumps. All on the same day, a hundred parakeets had been ordered for delivery But when the delivery truck arrived, the birdcages had not. So the driver released the birds into the beauty salon, shut the door, and walked out.

6 The cages did arrive later that day, but in flat boxes, unassembled. The residents gathered outside the beauty salon watching a frantic staff chasing birds through a cloud of feathers. People were laughing their butts off. It was a glorious kind of chaos. Daily feeding rounds were established to help care for the new menagerie. An old medication cart was turned into the bird mobile and loaded up with birdseed, dog treats, and cat food. Staff would push it around to each room to change newspaper liners and feed the animals. Amazingly, the residents began to come to life. People believed unable to speak started speaking. Withdrawn residents started coming to the nurses station and saying, I ll take that dog for a walk. All the parakeets were adopted and named by the residents. And the lights turned back on in people s eyes. 2 We don t always know what exactly will transform us. We can t always tell what God intends for our future. And just when we think we have it all figured out, Jesus is notorious for changing the itinerary and moving in a different direction. It s easy to lose hold of our faith when that happens. When we call upon God, but the mess keeps coming. When we call upon God, and it seems like God might be off on an extended vacation. And then we hear this story from Mark s gospel. And the story of the Pease brothers and the strangers who helped them cross the finish line in New York. And the story of a crazy young physician who was willing to try anything to bring life back to his lifeless patients. It s easy to lose hold of our faith, when we call upon God, and the mess keeps coming. If you re in that place this morning, I invite you to remember Simon and his anxiety that day when Jesus goes off script. 2 This story is from Being Mortal by Atul Gawande.

7 I invite you to remember the foundation you laid in my own life. And the many, many people this community has touched through me. And I invite you to remember the deep faith of sisters and brothers who say with incredible wisdom: God might not be there when you call him, but he ll be there right on time.