Children's time:
I invite the children to pour out all the glue on a plate, then scoop up the glue and put it back in the bottle.
I told them glue is like speech; once we say the words, it's very hard to take them back.
Our old testament reading is found on page 584 in your pew bibles. Listen for the word of God as it is found in Proverbs 1:20-33.
20 Wisdom cries out in the street; in the squares she raises her voice.
21 At the busiest corner she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks: 22"How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge?
23 Give heed to my reproof; I will pour out my thoughts to you; I will make my words known to you.
24 Because I have called and you refused, have stretched out my hand and no one heeded, 25 and because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when panic strikes you, 27 when panic strikes you like a storm, and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.
28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently, but will not find me. 29 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, 30 would have none of my counsel, and despised all my reproof, 31 therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way and be sated with their own devices.
32 For waywardness kills the simple, and the complacency of fools destroys them; 33 but those who listen to me will be secure and will live at ease, without dread of disaster."
This ends our reading from Proverbs. Listen to the word of God as it we read it together in Psalm 19.
1 <To the leader. A Psalm of David.>
The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; 4 yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In the heavens he has set a tent for the sun, 5 which comes out like a bridegroom from his wedding canopy, and like a strong man runs its course with joy.
6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them; and nothing is hid from its heat.
7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the decrees of the LORD are sure, making wise the simple; 8 the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is clear, enlightening the eyes; 9 the fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey, and drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
12 But who can detect their errors? Clear me from hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from the insolent; do not let them have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.
We've been going through the letter of James. James offers wise counsel to the early church and to us. So far we've been advised to be quick to listen and slow to speak, don't just hear the word but do it as well, don't show favoritism, care for the poor, not just the rich. In our scripture today, James warns of the dangers of speaking carelessly and harmfully; he urges the church members to pay attention to what they say. Listen for the word of God as it is found in James 3:1-13.
1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.
2 For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle.
3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies.
4 Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs.
5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire!
6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell.
7 For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8 but no one can tame the tongue— a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God.
10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so.
11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water?
12 Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.
This ends our reading of God's word.
Anthem
When we have God's wisdom, we don't have to fear disaster. Not because we are immunized against problems, but because we know that God's wisdom will help us no matter what comes. When we trust in God's law, when we walk in integrity and follow God's law of love, we know how to choose what to do and say. We need teachers who show us that this way of wise living is possible. I want to share this story about learning wisdom from Jeff Bezos, the man who founded Amazon.com.
He wrote:
“As a kid, I spent my summers with my grandparents on their ranch in Cotulla, Texas. I helped fix windmills, vaccinate cattle and did other ranch chores. It was hard work but a welcome change from my Houston life…I loved it.
One of the best, and strangest parts of spending summers with my grandparents was caravanning with the Wally Byam Caravan Club, a group of Airstream trailer owners.” (Some of you know Wally Byam used to live in Baker City.) “My grandparents were members and owned a thirty-one foot Airstream that they towed behind their 1973 Oldsmobile. Every few summers, we would join the caravan…. And it was during one of these trips that my grandfather said to me the right words at the right time.
I wasn't very old, maybe ten or eleven, but I was forming my opinions about the world, and, of course, I thought I knew much more about things than I actually did.
I was then, as I am now a big reader and a fiend for numbers. Anyone who has been on a long road trip knows that no matter how many books you bring, no matter how sparkling the conversation or beautiful the scenery, you still have too much time to think. So I spent a good deal of my extra time calculating. I calculated gas mileage. I figured out the average per item price of groceries bought over the course of the trip. And at some point, I saw an antismoking ad on TV. The announcer declared that every time a smoker took a puff on a cigarette, he was shortening his life span by two minutes. My grandmother was a smoker. I hated it, and not just because I knew that it was bad for her. My guess is that any kid who rides for thousands of miles sitting in the smoke-filled backseat of a 1973 Oldsmobile grows to hate smoking. So on one particularly long driving day, I decided to do the math.
I don't remember exactly what the number was—two minutes per puff, twenty puffs per cigarette, twenty cigarettes per pack, one pack a day for thirty years. About sixteen years? When I was satisfied that I had come up with a reasonably accurate number, I poked my head between the two front seats and tapped my grandmother on the shoulder. ‘You've taken sixteen years off of your life from smoking' I said, explaining the math…. She burst into tears.
It wasn't the ‘You're very clever—that's good math' reaction that I was expecting. But there's nothing like unintentionally stepping on a landmine to make you keenly aware of your effect on those around you. I felt terrible. I sat quietly in the backseat unsure of what to do.
My grandmother cried, and my grandfather…carefully pulled to the side of the road. He got out of the car and asked me to follow. Was I in trouble? How much trouble was I in? My grandfather had never said a harsh word to me, but this incident was unprecedented. I had no way to gauge how severe the consequences would be. We walked a few paces back and stood between the trunk of the car and the front of the silver trailer. … After a minute, my grandfather looked at me, put his hand on my shoulder and said, ‘You'll learn one day that it's much harder to be kind than clever.'
With both his words and the gentle way in which he delivered them, my grandfather taught me an essential lesson. I had always admired him for his intelligence, but that day I began to understand that his intelligence was only a gift that he had been given. It was the kindness with which he chose to apply it that he could be proud of.” 1
Being kind doesn't come easily to some of us. I know sometimes I'm too self-absorbed or too focused on the task at hand to think about the effect I have on others. Sometimes I have to be reminded that being kind is most often the most important task.
I've known people who were too insecure to realize how harsh their words sounded to others; and people too angry to notice the damage they were inflicting, and people too arrogant to realize other people deserve to be treated with respect.
I've given pastoral care to those who have survived encounters with people like that. I don't have a lot of wisdom on how to deal with people who inflict damage. I can validate the problem and encourage others to speak up for themselves when it's safe to do so.
So I was happy to hear this true story from a life skills teacher who teaches kickball to a learning disabled class. He wrote:
“In addition to the physical exercise, we learn tolerance and respect by playing kickball. The students practice listening while team assignments are made, disagreeing appropriately after being called out on a close play…. being a good teammate by supporting a peer who drops a ball, and learning to take ‘no' for an answer when asking if we can stay out longer. …
During the game, the sides don't switch at three outs, only after every team member has kicked. No score is kept, and when both teams have kicked, we head back in.”
One play stands out from all the rest. “It was near the end of the year, Bailey the Bird Boy… was kicking. He often wore shirts speckled with parrot droppings. He visited the speech pathologist, the occupational therapist and the physical therapist. He was a prime target for ridicule by his peers, but throughout the year Life Skills had given him the chance to be accepted. Without being condescending, his classmates would cheer when he kicked the ball and got on base.
Joining us that afternoon was Donny, a bully's bully. Mean and aggressive, Donny didn't join us for Life Skills very often. He usually spent his afternoons in in-school detentions.
Bailey and Donny were on opposing teams that day. When Bailey's turn came, he kicked the ball a few yards and ambled toward first base. Donny promptly scooped up the ball, and, with more force than necessary, threw the ball at Bailey, hitting him squarely in the back. ‘Yeah, I got the geek out!' Donny shouted, pumping his fist in the air and turning around to receive the congratulations of his teammates. To his surprise, his teammates weren't congratulating him; they were running to Bailey to see if he was OK. Then they turned to Donny and, as a group, stared at him with all the power adolescent peer pressure can harness. They continued to stared until Donny, confused, flustered and red-faced, walked over to Bailey and muttered ‘I'm sorry, Bailey.' This group of 12 year-olds had learned what I meant to teach them. They had learned compassion, acceptance and tolerance. They had learned the power of a team and were not about to let what they had learned be erased. 2
Our teacher is Jesus who shows us the way. At the table we share, we are given food that nourishes our bodies a little bit, but nourishes our souls even more. It feeds our faith and gives us ideas to think about. So we have not just food for thought, but food for speech. The same meal that nourishes our hearts, souls, and minds can also nourish our speech and help us speak words of kindness. And we all know that we can use more of that in the world.
1 Jeff Bezos, The Right Words at the Right Time, ed. Marlo Thomas, p. 21-23.
2 Holland, Matt. “The Redemptive Power of Kickball.” Teaching Tolerance, Spring 2002, p. 78. |
First Presbyterian Church