Picture in honor of Amy Jenkins Maxton-lover of all things smurfy.This is the first week of a sermon series titled,"Back to the Primary-Things we knew already but have forgotten." Hope you all enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed the preparation time.
For our 3 year olds at the Primary school, one of the best parts of the day is lunchtime. At 10:20 we begin the process of degermification. We take our little ones to the bathroom in shifts and then sanitize them. We do not use a pressure washer or anything like that, the item used is a miracle gel. To be honest, I do not buy into the whole antibacterial deal. Not to long ago I heard a comedy routine with George Carlin. He talked about his childhood and how his mom would let him play in the sewer drains in New York City. He then went on to say that he never gets sick. He credits this to all the strong immunity his body built up over time. On the other end of the spectrum is the way we attempt to keep our kids healthy and ungermed. A squirt of the magic gel, a little rubbing and then they are off to get in line.
We have an appointed line leader--this is a position of mere title. The problem we have is that our line of six, three year-olds is not really a line. It is a part snake and part stampeding bull and it seems useless to get them in the appointed places. We have one little girl with a limp. She always moves to the left. We are supposed to stay hugged against the wall on the right side of the hall. She bounces about to the left--I steer her back to the right. As soon as she gets lined back up, off to the left she pops again.
We find our spots at the table. My little guy is always impatient and wants his food, NOW!!! He does not talk, but he lets me know that he is hungry and does not want to wait on the assistant to warm it up. His mom sends the same thing for him to eat everyday. No, really...everyday. He has chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes. He never eats the potatoes, but inhales the chicken. I make the sign language symbol for chicken--he never makes the sign and I give him the chicken anyway.
The little boy across from me at the table has anger issues. He is super smart, but oh my!! If he does not get his way it is chaotic. He throws himself in the floor and throws whatever he has across the room. He gets so angry he jerks all over and he loves to push people. At lunch, he just sits there, super still and never eats a thing.
We have one little girl that is super messy. Chocolate milk goes everywhere and food is all over the people that sit beside her. She needs to wear a bib, but it would never stay on the entire 30 minutes. I made sure the second day I was there to always have someone sitting between she and I.
This motley crew of three year olds share a table 4 days a week at school. Food is important for them, just as it was for the people in the scripture today. Often times we forget how many stories there are in the bible that are about food.
John 6:30-34
For our 3 year olds at the Primary school, one of the best parts of the day is lunchtime. At 10:20 we begin the process of degermification. We take our little ones to the bathroom in shifts and then sanitize them. We do not use a pressure washer or anything like that, the item used is a miracle gel. To be honest, I do not buy into the whole antibacterial deal. Not to long ago I heard a comedy routine with George Carlin. He talked about his childhood and how his mom would let him play in the sewer drains in New York City. He then went on to say that he never gets sick. He credits this to all the strong immunity his body built up over time. On the other end of the spectrum is the way we attempt to keep our kids healthy and ungermed. A squirt of the magic gel, a little rubbing and then they are off to get in line.
We have an appointed line leader--this is a position of mere title. The problem we have is that our line of six, three year-olds is not really a line. It is a part snake and part stampeding bull and it seems useless to get them in the appointed places. We have one little girl with a limp. She always moves to the left. We are supposed to stay hugged against the wall on the right side of the hall. She bounces about to the left--I steer her back to the right. As soon as she gets lined back up, off to the left she pops again.
We find our spots at the table. My little guy is always impatient and wants his food, NOW!!! He does not talk, but he lets me know that he is hungry and does not want to wait on the assistant to warm it up. His mom sends the same thing for him to eat everyday. No, really...everyday. He has chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes. He never eats the potatoes, but inhales the chicken. I make the sign language symbol for chicken--he never makes the sign and I give him the chicken anyway.
The little boy across from me at the table has anger issues. He is super smart, but oh my!! If he does not get his way it is chaotic. He throws himself in the floor and throws whatever he has across the room. He gets so angry he jerks all over and he loves to push people. At lunch, he just sits there, super still and never eats a thing.
We have one little girl that is super messy. Chocolate milk goes everywhere and food is all over the people that sit beside her. She needs to wear a bib, but it would never stay on the entire 30 minutes. I made sure the second day I was there to always have someone sitting between she and I.
This motley crew of three year olds share a table 4 days a week at school. Food is important for them, just as it was for the people in the scripture today. Often times we forget how many stories there are in the bible that are about food.
John 6:30-34
They answered, “Show us a miraculous sign if you want us to believe in you. What can you do? After all, our ancestors ate manna while they journeyed through the wilderness! The Scriptures say, ‘Moses gave them bread from heaven to eat.
Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven. The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
“Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every day.”
Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven. The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
“Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every day.”
The people wanted a sign. Show us a sign and we will believe. Moses showed us and we followed him. What are you going to do, Jesus?
I just love the hint of sarcasm in the voice of Christ. My loose translation is..."Let me tell you something--Moses did nothing. My Dad did that, and guess what He is still offering you something but this is much better than before.
I am enough to fill you forever. The manna was a daily portion, my portion is for a lifetime and then on into eternity.
They wanted some of what he had to offer then. Give us that bread EVERYDAY!! Reminds me of my little guy with the chicken. It is the same everyday, but it fills him. Are we satisfied with Jesus. Is he enough? Seems like we always want more when what we really need is right here.
This morning we are coming to the Table of Christ. Is His body (bread) enough? Is His blood (the cup) still sufficient for you and me? Maybe we long for something more exotic and dynamic--but the reality is that nothing can take the place of Christ in our lives. We try to fill the "God shaped void" and we find ourselves gorged, but empty.
In this time of silence before coming to the table--ask God to show you what has gotten you off track. Don't fool yourselves. We are all in the same boat here. We have not given God our whole heart and we rarely love our neighbors as ourselves.
Remember--He is enough for whatever you are facing..yesterday, today and tomorrow.
**While serving over 115 people Communion, I said to one gentleman, "The blood of Christ given for You." His reply, "I am so glad to have a place at his table."
Guess what? There is room for another---care to join us?
No comments:
Post a Comment