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“Go Togethers”
Isaiah 1:1, 10-20; Psalm 50:1-8, 22-23; Luke 12:32-40;
Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16
Rev. Sandy Nuernberg
Oakland-Cambridge Presbyterian Church, Cambridge, WI
19th Sunday in Ordinary Time -
Homelessness/Affordable Housing
August 12, 2007
Please pray with me: O
God, as we listen to and ponder your Word, allow your Holy Spirit to descend
upon us and give us strength to persevere and to not lose heart as we live
our faith in daily practice and in personal character. AMEN.
“For where your
treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Luke 12:34
A few summers ago, my husband’s
family members came to Madison from Green Bay to watch the Triathlon, that
grueling race of swimming, biking, and running, held near downtown. Madison
seems to host those endurance kinds of events, don’t they? Art Fairs on the
hottest July days, the Crazy Legs Run in late April with record numbers, and
now, lately the Triathlon, in late August or early September, bringing entrants
from around the world. Our niece’s husband’s brother, Gary, was entering the
event, on a Sunday! We went out early as the sun was rising, to stake out our
places on the Monona Terrace walk-way. We saw him jump into Lake Monona for
stage one–it was before 7 a.m., a glorious day that was predicted to hit the 90s
with humidity like we are presently experiencing these days. I wished I had
trained, ‘cause it looked like fun! I had run in the Crazy Legs a few times!!
But at the same time, I also asked, why do people train and then look like they
are punishing their bodies in such a race?
We met next, as family gathered
west of Middleton, to see Gary bike back towards Madison on what seemed like an
endless course. As the day progressed, the heat soared, and the runners were
obviously needing hydration by the time they headed towards the square; we saw
them being sprayed by water jets and handed water bottles aplenty! By now, we
were cheering them to be able to finish and were near the Memorial Union; I saw
a guy using the dumpster near the Memorial Union Library to relieve himself as
their bodies were screaming for rest and liquids; I was glad I had made a wise
choice not to even think to enter this race!
As we came back to the stands to
watch the end of the race, we waited to see the first finishers, along with our
hero and his last stretch towards home on Martin Luther King Boulevard, off the
square. Gary came in twelfth in the men’s division, we all cheered and it was a
wonderful event to watch, wait, and wonder about. I asked Gary, what he liked
best about racing and putting his body through such training and exercise;
mostly, did he have faith he would finish? He said, “The returns, for me, are
great. I really enjoy the personal ‘feeling’ I get from it; the perseverance,
the rewards of exercising regularly...I’ve gotten to know others in these races,
so now we enter some of them together.”
I have to think Jesus had similar
‘go-togethers’ in his life: personal feeling and perseverance to the end
(to the cross)! Jesus is the perfecter and
pioneer of our faith (12:2-3), so we do
not grow weary or lose heart. But the real go-togethers Jesus is talking about,
it seems, are our treasures that we have and how our hearts will follow. Jesus’
heart was devoted to God, and his treasure was seeking the Kingdom of God.
Hebrews is a landmark book in the
N.T. relating to and referring constantly to the O.T., that’s why I love it; the
contrasts and parallels of these texts. Our text in this 11th chapter
is often named by scholars the “Faith of our Fathers” or the “Hall of Fame” of
our faith. For me, it defines faith, as the next 18 sentences begins with ‘by
faith.’; ‘faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things
not seen (v. 1, KJV).’
Without faith it is impossible to please God
(v. 6). In a way, our hearts are our
personal feelings, and the center of our treasures, the winning the race. Our
treasures are what come from our perseverance of those personal feelings, our
being steadfast in our persistence for the treasures. This is really how the
Hebrews in the O.T. defined ‘heart’; not as a physical pumping system that
functions, beat by beat, but the center or core personality of our entire being.
As we know, and as Jesus seems to
do, however, there are consequences; responsibilities of the heart for our
treasures. Life and faith in God do build character, but perhaps not as we
expect or desire, not perfection. In Luke, Jesus tells us ‘not to worry’ and
that God’s ‘good pleasure is to give us the kingdom.’ We are told to be ready,
‘be dressed and have your lamps lit’ just as the master and slave are to be on
guard. Be responsible, Jesus advises us. Hebrews gives us examples of O.T.
ancestors of faith such as Abel, Enoch, Noah, Moses, and Abraham, favorite
Israelite characters illustrating what it means to live by faith in God ‘not
visible’, yet in a world prepared by the word of God
(v. 2). They may not have known what to expect, as everything
they received was given to them by God. And we know that even by faith none of
these ‘fathers’ were necessarily given what they were promised; but they
practiced what they believed to be faithful and sought treasures of their
hearts. They strived to win the race. These bold men had tough faith, as they
lived, we trust, a kind of faith that was pleasing to God.
“For where your treasure is, there your heart
will be also.”
A few weeks ago now, Sylvia Jensen
and I went to visit life on the farm, nearby Hinchley dairy farms, off Hwy.
73. We went because at least three of our church young people are or were
working there, and in their enthusiasm, they wanted us to see the place and what
they were doing. I was captured by the entire visit, especially the Hinchley
family, as I thought, these people have a real treasure here and they share it
with others. As a true farmer, Tina Hinchley told us, “Don’t think I work too
hard. I love this life with my family at my side. I am so blessed with the life
I have.”
At 40, she has the life of a dairy
farmer, a wife and mother of four, and a business person and tour guide. As a
family and together, Tina says they eat, joke, laugh and cry, and praise each
other. For me, her smile tells the whole story of her heart; you know, that kind
of smile that is of contentment, warmth, joy, and satisfaction. This from a
person who describes her life from 3:30 a.m. ‘til 8:30 p.m. plumb full of life’s
treasures outdoors, and yes, faith. We were shown by Tina and told of the
chickens/eggs, milking cows (“the girls”)
/young calves, sheep and goats, and picnic areas for tours–Tina shows tours of
thousands of school children yearly from April 15th to October 31st,
some who ‘have never been on a farm before.’
In all of this, Tina has words of
wisdom, for her family, and for us. Her heart is where her treasures are indeed.
In an article about her and her day on the farm, and where I gathered
information, along with talking to Tina, Brava magazine honored her with
other working women recently (Brava,
Encore Edition, 2007-8, Erickson Publishing, Madison, WI, p. 105-110). In
it, Tina commented her ‘ground rules’ for the kitchen; I think they are ground
rules for us in our life and faith:
a) If you make something for
yourself, you must ask if anyone else wants some
b) If you say you want some,
you must try it–even if it’s gross
c) Don’t hurt the cook’s
feelings!
d) If you don’t have anything
nice to say, don’t say anything at all!
Our good news in the gospel us
is that we can run with perseverance the race that is set before us, having
faith that we will finish strong and be rewarded. Having faith is what God’s
will has created in us, and through the Word of Christ Jesus for us and in the
work of the Holy Spirit in us, our heart will help us to persevere and win the
treasure–the Kingdom of God available to/for us. Our go-togethers of personal
feeling and perseverance to the finish-line in faith are true treasures of the
heart. A rewarding Kingdom where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For
where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Let it be so.
Thanks be to
God. AMEN.
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