First Presbyterian Church
The Gospel according to Dr. Suess
Sermons for May 14, 2006
by the PYGs

"Horton" by Jamie Moon

“A person's a person no matter how small” This classic line that seems to be used over and over in our world today actually comes from a children's book – Horton Hears a Who. In the story, Horton is an elephant that finds an entire world of Whos on a speck on a clover. Thanks to his giant ears, he is able to hear the Whos when his animal friends cannot. Consequently, these “friends” pronounce Horton mentally ill and try to rid Horton of his problem by taking away his clover. An eagle takes the clover, drops it into a never-ending field, and leaves it there for eternity. In response, Horton goes on a mission to find his missing clover. Thirteen million clovers later, he finds it. To persuade the rest of his friends, Horton devises a plan in order for his friends to hear the Whos. He directs every who to shout “YUP” at the same time. The voices are still not loud enough. But then Horton finds that one little Who is not yelling. Miraculously, as soon as she shouts "YUP" with the rest of her world, all of Horton's friends can hear and understand the Whos. Then, of course, they live happily ever after.

This small children's story is filled with biblical inferences and one major God-like feature – Horton. Horton cares for smallest creatures, as does God. Nobody in Horton's world even knew that the Whos existed. Only Horton took the time to listen. Sometimes we tend to overlook the smallest creatures in this world. This has been a common theme throughout history, with prime examples in our Bible. Jesus Christ took care of all people. Not just the rich, the powerful, and the “holy”. But everyone that socially and politically had no voice. The slaves in Egypt , the forever hated tax collectors, and the unclean prostitutes. However, the best example is one of the synagogue leader's daughter. Women in this time were not well respected, neither were young children. So to be both was the recipe for insignificance. This little girl had no voice, no power, no money, nothing to offer Jesus, but do you think he cared? Of course not, because "A person's a person no matter how small". Now, I am not Jesus, but I can still care for the smallest of creatures. I can do it every day. By simply talking lonely BHS students, I am caring for all people, not just those that I feel are important.

Another important part of this story is the fact that Horton is persistant. Even though his friends try to dispose of his clover and even call him crazy, Horton still searches for the Whos. He doesn't care, he knows that even if the chances of finding his clover is about one in thirteen million, there is still a chance. That is what motivates him, and that is what love is all about – persistence, dedication, care. This situation is easy to tie into Bible stories and God. The Bible speaks repeatedly about God as a shepherd. No matter how lost a sheep may be, God will spend all of his time retrieving that one sheep. Listen to Luke15:3-7:

4 "Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?

5 When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices.

6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost .'

I know I don't like to admit it, but I can be a lost sheep sometimes. There are times when I am in question, and incidents in my life seem to lead me astray. I feel like it would be easier to just give up on the whole faith thing and live my life how I think would be most fun. Even when all these outside forces lead me away from God, he is still there. He still takes care of me and loves me more than I will ever comprehend. And because of that, I know he will always be there. Through turmoil, death, stress, thick, thin, unfair, everything. He will try thirteen million times to get through to me and it won't work. Until that one try that manages to turn everything around and brings me back. Just like Horton did for the Whos, and because of him their lives were saved.

Sometimes it seems like the Bible is too confusing and we would rather just leave it alone and let someone else tell us about it. But it's not as bad as you think. Many of the stories, beliefs, and theories can be summed up into a children's book. And when it comes down to it, there is an overriding theme that holds true: God will be there through it all, and he loves us so much that he will continue to care for us regardless of what happens.