Sermon

MAY 13, 2007

The Fear Factor:  Fear of Not Counting       

John 14: 23-27

May 13, 2007

It is often our mothers who encourage and affirm us – to the point that, as we are growing up, we know we are significant.  Our mothers kiss our bruises, they help take our puppy to the Vet, they feed our little green turtle, change his water, and even talk to him when we forget.

Then comes the day when we realize our mortality.  We realize our finitude – our finiteness.  We hear the statistics.  There are now 6 billion people on planet Earth – we are only one of them.  The earth that holds those 6 billion people, when seen from space, looks like a tiny blue dot!

We begin to try to find meaning in our existence.  How can we know that our life is counting for something?  Will we be remembered?  Some, seeking immortality, begin to go down the wrong path in the pursuit of that immortality, what Andy Warhol called that “15 minutes of fame” - Cho, a student at Virginia Tech, in his recent tragic attempt to be remembered; Ja, a student from Frisco ISD, in his vision that he might amass, as a serial killer, a reputation that would surpass that of George Bundy.  Over 7,100 people around the world have volunteered to bequeath their bodies after death to Body Worlds to be messed with and gawked at – many of them in order to be remembered – to be immortal.

We delve into distractions to forget or postpone the reality of our mortality.  We modify with botox, surgery, implants.  We medicate with alcohol, drugs, and risky behavior.  We accumulate with money we often don’t have, things we often don’t need.  Even those who do have, one day wake up to the realization that the modifications, the medications, the accumulations have not brought immortality or meaning.  There is still stress; there is still depression.  Sometimes there is bitterness, often hopelessness – or as Shakespeare’s character Macbeth described it – “a walking shadow, a tale told by an idiot, signifying nothing” – the very opposite of what is described in today’s scripture.  “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”  (John 14:27)

Jesus is saying this to his disciples, as part of his farewell.  Jesus realized that without his physical presence, the disciples would not believe that they counted, that they could make it without Him, that they would be remembered.  He promises them that when he is gone, they will receive the Holy Spirit.  “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”  (John 14:26)  With the Holy Spirit, the teacher, the disciples will be able to accomplish great things.  They will have the gift of peace.  Their significance then, their meaning in life, will come from “a gift they receive, not a search they achieve.”  (Gordon Venturella)

In 1985, a film came out called “Insignificance.”  The film was set in the 1950’s.  The four main characters are thinly veiled enactments of Einstein, Marilyn Monroe, Joe DiMaggio and Senator Joseph McCarthy.  World War II is in the recent past, and the catastrophic capabilities of the atomic bomb are still vivid in everyone’s memory.  It seems that Einstein – whose discoveries made the atomic bomb possible – is in town to deliver a pacifist speech to a United Nations that has witnessed the dawning of a nuclear age.  When Einstein returns to his room, he stumbles upon Marilyn Monroe who, despite her stereotype as an airhead, is really there to learn about the theory of relativity.  Marilyn has just finished filming the notorious Seven Year Itch scene that some say led to the end of her marriage with baseball hero Joe DiMaggio.  Joe jumps to the conclusion that Einstein and Marilyn are secretly meeting one another.  Senator McCarthy then enters the scene, convinced that Einstein is a Red, a Communist, alarmed that the friendship between Marilyn – a peace activist – and Einstein – a peace activist, will come to no good.  McCarthy is determined to get Einstein to sign off on the use of nuclear arms in the name of peace.  Each one of the characters have their deepest fears, and part of those fears is that they WILL be remembered in perpetuity, but, ironically, for something for which they would never WANT to be remembered.  Certainly they will not be remembered for the kind of peace Jesus is describing in today’s scripture.

That kind of peace is given by Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, whether we seek it or not.  In John 5, we see evidence.  In the holy city, we find a place full of invalids - crutches, canes, people who cannot hide their need for healing.  Jesus strikes up a conversation with a man who has been ill for 38 years.    “Do you want to get well?”  The man becomes somewhat defensive in answering that question.  “Sir, I have no one to put me in the pool when the water is stirred up; and while I am making my way, someone else steps down ahead of me.”  (John 5:7)  Jesus heals this man.  “Take up your mat and walk.”  Jesus heals this man without hearing about what he believes.  The man doesn’t seem to know Jesus to be a healer; he doesn’t seem to know anything at all about Jesus.  In healing the man, Jesus provides a peace that is not of this world, a peace beyond a mere 15 minutes of fame.  Whether we seek it or not, our life has meaning with Jesus.  “The meaning of life is a gift we receive, not a search we achieve.”  (Repeat.)

Unconditional love!!  Surely many of us were first introduced to the concept of unconditional love through the unconditional love of our mothers, whether it was our biological mother, our adoptive mother, our stepmother, maybe a teacher – someone who stood in for our mother, someone who made us feel significant.

A few years ago, a significant customer service professional was hired by a large supermarket chain to develop a customer service program that would build customer loyalty.  During her speech to the supermarket employees she said, “Every one of you can make a difference and create memories for your customers that will motivate them to come back.  Put your personal signature on the job.  Think about something you can do for your customer to make them feel special, a memory that will make them come back.”

About a month after she had spoken, she received a call from a 19-year-old bagger named Johnny.  He proudly informed her he was a Down-Syndrome individual and told her his story.  “I liked what you talked about, but at first I didn’t think I could do anything special for our customers.  After all, I’m just a bagger.  Then I had an idea!  Every night after work, I’d come home and find a thought for the day.  If I can’t find a saying I like, I just make one up!”  When Johnny had a good thought for the day, his mother helped him set it up on the computer and print multiple copies.  Johnny cut out each quote and signed his name on the back.  Then he would bring them to work the next day.  “When I finish bagging someone’s groceries, I put my thought for the day in their bag and say, ‘Thanks for shopping with us!’”  It touched Barbara to think that this young man with a job most people would say is not important had made it important by creating precious memories for all his customers.

A month later, the store manager called Barbara.  “You won’t believe what happened today.  When I was making my rounds, I found Johnny’s checkout line was three times longer than anyone else’s.  It went all the way down the frozen food aisle.  So I quickly announced, ‘We need more cashiers; get more lanes open.’  But no one would move.  They said, ‘No, it’s okay.  We want to be in Johnny’s line.  We want his Thought for the Day.’  A few months later, the manager called again.  Johnny had transformed the store.  Their customers were talking about them.  They were coming back and bringing friends.  A wonderful spirit had spread through the store.  Johnny’s idea wasn’t nearly as innovative as it was loving.  It came from his heart.  It was real.  That’s what made it significant. 

In the Christian calendar, this coming Thursday marks the day of Jesus’ Ascension, the day, 50 days after his resurrection, that Jesus would leave his disciples.  He is assuring each of them here that, even in his absence, they will count, that God will remember each of them with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

I am reminded on this Mother’s Day that many of our mothers have left or will leave us a legacy – of peace – of significance.  I am also mindful that not all legacies are equitable.  The legacy of Jesus’ gift, however, is equitable.  Each of us can receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

How do we achieve meaning in our lives and not a mere 15 minutes of fame?  We have to put our faith in something other than the instantaneous gratification of modification, medication, and accumulation.  We have to seek the meaning of life through the gift we receive – the peace that passes all understanding.  Amen.