Sermon Yesterday

Yesterday I took my turn to preach. The text was Phil. 2:13-18. I applied it entirely to our congregation's visioning process while acknowledging that Paul did not write to the Philippians, saying, "Now as you embark on your visioning process, bearing in mind the definition which I prophesy George Barna will give c. 1940 years from now, work out your salvation with fear and trembling, etc. etc."

I derived four adverbs from the text which generally apply to how we are to live and suggested that they have particular application to this process: Seriously, Joyfully, Respectfully (for each other and for our past) and Evangelistically (ie holding out the "word of life"). In order to have us practise speaking words of life to one another (rather than words of death such as "I don't know why I bother with you) I solicited ideas from the congregation to put on an overhead of life-giving phrases paraphrasing (briefly) the Good News. Then we "passed the Peace" by moving about the room speaking these phrases to each other (sometimes with hugs). That was how we ended the sermon.

However, the effect produced by saying to one another "There is always hope." or "You are pardoned" wasn't exactly what I intended. (Try it out in your imagination and you'll see.)

But some people did say "I love you" to me, which was very heartening. And I managed to say it back. Something about my life has conditioned me to be very guarded about speaking those words, justifying my stinginess by pointing to those who abuse the phrase in order to gain selfish ends.

I wish I could more freely wear my heart on my sleeve. I could take a page out of others' books by "lightening" that (possibly heavy) phrase by adapting it to "I love ya" or "love yuh" to emphasize the unconditional friendliness of the phrase when best spoken.

Oddly enough my last two sermons have *not* produced the usual after-effect in me of self-criticism "That really sucked!!!" which almost cripples me. This time, even though, for time's sake, I ended up skipping over an illustration re. Respect for the Past based on my life at Camp Dorion and didn't explain the "Passing the Peace" as well as I could have, I managed to escape tormenting myself and felt fairly satisfied. Maybe I am actually growing.

Right now coincidentally I'm listening to U2's "All I Want is You" which produces the same wrenching effect in me that it produces in many other people, because I am not just all brain, puns and punctuation.