is a God that makes the barren womb bring forth life, establishing the lineage of those who would be known as the Jews, Israelites- the Hebrews.

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1 A Most Beautiful Song Exodus 14:19-15:11, September 17, 2017 Mary Taylor Memorial United Methodist Church, Milford, Connecticut Danielle Dani Levine, Outreach Pastor I love music. I play several instruments, I sing basically music is how I function on a daily basis. I live with a learning disability, which wasn t diagnosed until I was an adult, and one way I manage this difficulty is to select one song per course and use that song as a means of studying and completing the work for that course. My absolute favorite music genre Contemporary Christian or Christian Alternative. I tell you this because one of my absolute favorite artists is a son of a Pastor by the name of Matthew West. As he was recently describing one of his newest songs, Matthew said that Signs in Nashville say that it all begins with a song. He added, Every song begins with a story. Of all the artists who could make this claim, Matthew West is truly the one who lives it. Almost all of his songs tell a story from his fans. Stories of struggles and call and of answered prayer; stories of God s healing and redemptive power. Today s scripture lesson is a story that many are familiar with- the parting of the Red Sea. Moses has led the Israelites out of Egypt. The scripture leading up to today s lesson tells us that God hardened the Pharaoh s heart, which would cause Pharaoh to pursue the Israelites into the wilderness. The scripture also tells us that this is so that God would be able to gain glory over Pharaoh. God is reassuring the Israelites that they are under the protection of the God of their ancestors. For generations, these people have lived as slaves to the Egyptian ruler, and their story was a collective hopelessness. They witnessed their friends, family, and neighbors beaten and forced into labor to serve the wishes of the Pharaoh. They had grown with long, lost stories of a land promised to their ancestors, but their daily reality was one of servitude in a foreign land. While the labor was difficult, and the Egyptians weren t all that nice to their Israelite slaves, this life was all any of them had known going back generations. That made it somewhat difficult for them to fully rely on the power of God, after all, it was the understanding among the Egyptians that the Pharaoh was the representative of their gods on Earth. The Israelites had never experienced the power of God- only the power of the Pharaoh. This is why God wanted- no, needed to gain glory over the Pharaoh- to prove God s own power to be superior to that of a man. After all, this 1

2 is a God that makes the barren womb bring forth life, establishing the lineage of those who would be known as the Jews, Israelites- the Hebrews. This is a God that had just brought ten plagues upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, for not releasing the Israelites from their captivity. This Exodus is a defining story of both the Jewish and the Christian faith. It is a blessing to generations of people globally. Each year, the traditions of the Jewish people ontinues as they observe the time of Passover. Not only is this story vital to the Jewish tradition, it is part of our heritage, as Christians. The passage today has one of the earliest songs recorded in the Bible. It is a song of praise, thanksgiving, and reverence. Moses and Miriam have taken their story and put it to song. The song preserves the story to be passed from generation to generation. Think back to your childhood- are there songs that you can still recall that helped you learn something? The other night, I was with my mother and I recalled a song about manners from a TV show that I watched when I was preschool aged. A rhythm and a tune will make it more likely that we remember something important. Music can be a great tool for outreach, exploration, and evangelism. Christian music has become embedded in subcultures throughout the world. There are musicians sharing the Good News through heavy metal music (just ask some of our young people who have heard this kind of music in my car), rap and hip-hop, pop/top 40, and even country music. The Gospel message is reaching all kinds of people where they are through music, and inviting them to learn more about the Christian story. Through the passages in Exodus, we experience how God saved the Israelites from slavery- hard labor slavery. Likewise, through Jesus Christ, we are being liberated, from another kind of slavery. As it is stated in our Communion liturgy, By the baptism of [Jesus s] suffering, death, and resurrection, [God] gave birth to the church, delivered us from slavery to sin and death, and made with us a new covenant by water and the Spirit. Through the accepting of Jesus as Lord, we share in this story of deliverance. I say we share in this story of deliverance very intentionally. When we accept Jesus as Lord in our lives, something amazing happens. When we accept Jesus as Lord, we submit to God, giving up our control in our lives. When we accept Jesus as Lord, we will seek the will of God for our lives. Now, this was always a very difficult thing for me, as a Type A personality; I don t like to give up control of anything. In fact, I can remember a time when I was a contrarian; I would frequently do the opposite of what I was told 2

3 to or what was suggested. I had to always find my own way to do something. One specific moment I can recall is when I was 14, and it was at the rehearsal dinner for my brother s first wedding. My mom and our pastor at the time, who are both named Barbara, sat next to one another, and across from me. It was the summer before I started High School, and I can remember them arguing over what I was going to do with my life. Pastor Barbara was adamant that I would go into the ministry, and my mother was adamant that with my arguing skills I would go into law or politics. At that point, I was determined that I would do neither, as someone else was determining my path Well we know how well that turned out. Here I am, a declared candidate for ordained ministry, seminary-bound, and a member of the legislative team for the New York Annual Conference The Barbaras were both right that night. It s difficult to give up control, especially when we could be headed in a direction that not only takes us out of our comfort zones, but removes the safeguards we may have been clinging to. Sometimes, it s a call to participate in a study or a new kind of ministry in the local church. Maybe it s a call outside of the church- attending today s Accompaniment Training, perhaps, or learning more about how we can be a better neighbor to those around us. Perhaps, it s answering a call to international missions to people who need your specific training or skills. Maybe it s mucking out homes devastated by natural disasters. Laying down our own will for God s is not an easy task. We each have the desire to be the main character in the story of our life, after all, it s our individual life. When we enter into a relationship with Jesus, we then add our own story as a piece in God s bigger story. We play a supporting role to what God is doing in the world. When we let God play the main role in our lives, there is a type of freedom that comes, where we learn to rely on God for guidance and direction. Not all people are called to a ministry such as this. Not all are called to be pastors- but all are called to be neighbors and to be a member of the body of Christ at work in the world. Each part of the body has a different role, but no one part is more important than another. A story or a book contains multiple characters, each, no matter how small the role may seem, has an important part to play. The most important thing is that each one of us has the capacity to be the mouth of Christ, sharing the Good News with the world. Stories are a great way to do that. As God is at work in our lives, our part of God s story develops. We can then share our own story- our witness and testimony with others, which invites them to share in God s story. 3

4 How we share our stories can be different based on our own gifts and our interests. For instance, I know of some who are gifted in song writing, music, media production, visual display development, story-telling, drama, and those who are craftspersons. Each of our talents, skills, and gifts can be used to share God s story in our lives. In a world filled with so much pain and devastation, we are called to provide light and hope to a hurting world. As the Israelites crossed the Red Sea on dry land, God provided them an opportunity to become witnesses a power greater than that of the Pharaoh. This became a story to be told to the generations that followed. Moses and Miriam even put it into song to be as accurate a representation as possible to share that witness with all; our God is a powerful God. Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in splendor, doing wonders? (Exodus 15:11, NRSV) Our God today is still the God of wonders, the God of miracles, and the God of great power. Our God is an awesome God (sing) As Methodists, we have a strong connection to music, in fact, we have 3 separate available hymnals- at least one song from each has been used today for the service. Methodists have a history of going out into the communities and meeting people where they are, finding ways to share the Gospel in a way that they would remember the stories through song. Charles Wesley was a great songwriter who used the existing melodies of the time to introduce a participatory faith to the people of England and the American Colonies, much like I discussed earlier with the Christian artists breaking into the various subcultures. Not all our songs tell the good stories. It is important to know that as we go through life, it doesn t always get easier because we have accepted Jesus as our Lord. What does happen, is that we gain the strength of Jesus sharing our burdens, helping to lighten our load. Today s Introit reminded us of that Every blessing You pour out, I'll turn back to praise. When the darkness closes in, Lord, still I will say blessed be the name of the Lord. 4

5 West, Matthew Amen (Song Story). MatthewWestVEVO. URL: 5