Living in the Light

Isaiah 9:2-7 & John 1:1-9
First Sunday of Advent
Elizabeth M. Deibert

Light of the world, as we hear your written Word, may You, the Living Word made flesh, lighten the dark corners of our minds and hearts and souls.

For twenty years of ministry I have ordinarily followed the lectionary texts and the seasons of the church year with joy and seen them as gift and pattern, but today, as in recent weeks, I am going down a different path. I’m engaging a Christmas and Epiphany theme of light, because the culture we live in takes us to Christmas before it’s Christmas. For years, I have tried to shout against the noise and busy-ness of Christmas preparations saying “Wait! Stop! It is not Christmas. It is advent. And advent means waiting, longing, anticipating, but surely not celebrating the light of Christmas before Christmas.

Well, this year, I’ve decided not to stop being the purist. I’ve decided that we might weave the not-yet-ness of Advent with the already here of Christmas into a better understanding of the time and place in which we live. Jesus the light of the world has come into our darkness. He is already here, even as we prepare our hearts to receive the great news of God’s incarnation once again. He is already here when we erect our Christmas trees and turn on the lights and he is also here, when we are lying in a dark room of discouragement, wondering if the morning light of a new day will ever dawn upon us.

Let us anticipate this celebration of the wonderful gift of light by living in the light. Let us declare what all the bright lights of this season really mean. Let us ponder how the lights of Christmas might point us to the one true light, coming into the world to illumine all who walk in darkness.


Isaiah 9:2-7

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;

those who lived in a land of deep darkness - on them light has shined.

3 You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy;

they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder.

4 For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor,

you have broken as on the day of Midian.

5 For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood

shall be burned as fuel for the fire.

6 For a child has been born for us, a son given to us;

authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 His authority shall grow continually,

and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom.

He will establish and uphold it with justice and with

righteousness from this time onward and forevermore.

The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

(singing) For unto us a child is born Unto us a son is given. Unto us a son is given. And his name shall be call-ed Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. The Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.

Handel has forever turned these verses to music for me and for many of you. Second to the Hallelujah Chorus, this one is best known music of all of Handel’s Messiah.

This child to be born is the one to lead us out of darkness. Isaiah talks about this time of darkness. The king had not listened to God, so God stopped speaking and the people were left in the darkness of their sin. It was a time of war and oppression. They were burdened by the yoke of their oppressor, by the bar across their backs, by the blood and death all around. But then they saw the light, and the bloody clothes turned into the fire of God’s glory burning bright. This vision of Isaiah has filled people with hope of a new day. And for Christians looking back, this 2700 year old vision is understood as Jesus Christ, the child born for us, the light of the world.

The symbolism of light and darkness is ancient and has many rich meanings across cultures and time. Darkness is associated with blindness, night, sleep, cold, gloom, despair, lostness, chaos, death, danger and yearning for the dawn. It is a striking image of the human condition. Unfortunately, we have transferred many of the negative images of darkness to person with darker skin. Light is seen as the antidote to darkness, and is an image of salvation. In the light, one is awake, able to see and find one's way; it is associated with relief and rejoicing that the night is over; in the light one is safe and warm. In the light there is life. Having paler skin, of course, does not mean one is filled with more light, only less melatonin, the pigment that gives our skin its beautiful shades of light and dark brown, with various hues of peach and amber.

Many texts in the Hebrew Bible use symbolism of light. Light is associated with creation: "Let there be light" is the first of God's creative acts in the Book of Genesis. Light is a metaphor for God's illumination of the path: "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." In texts from the Hebrew Bible often read in churches during the season of Advent, light is associated with God's acts of deliverance as we see in Isaiah’s text about the people walking in darkness seeing a great light. Later Isaiah says what the choir sang to open our service:

Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and God's glory will appear over you. Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. (Isaiah 61)

Light shining in the darkness is a central image in the birth stories. It is most obvious in the star of Matthew's Gospel, shining in the night sky and leading the Magi to the place of Jesus' birth. Luke makes use of the imagery as his story of "shepherds keeping watch over their flocks by night." The "glory of the Lord shone around them" as an angel told them of the birth of Jesus, and then "a multitude of the heavenly host" filled the night sky, singing, "Glory to God!" But for John, the image of light is paramount. John speaks of the light which as the embodiment of God on earth can never be overcome by darkness.

Hear now what John says

John 1:1-9

In the beginning was the Word,

and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God.

2 He was in the beginning with God.

3 All things came into being through him,

and without him not one thing came into being.

What has come into being 4 in him was life,

and the life was the light of all people.

5 The light shines in the darkness,

and the darkness did not overcome it.

6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

7 He came as a witness to testify to the light,

so that all might believe through him.

8 He himself was not the light,

but he came to testify to the light.

9 The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

John says that we humans are creatures of either light or of darkness. There is no in between. The darkness is associated with death, while the light is associated with life. This theme is developed throughout the Gospel. In 1:4-9, John portrays Jesus as being the light of humanity and demonstrates that the darkness does not understand the light. John the Baptist came to bear witness of the light in order that we would live in the light. In the third chapter (19-21) Jesus states that the light has come into the world, but people have loved the darkness instead of the light because their works were evil. Evildoers hate the light and are afraid to go into the light lest their works be exposed. On the other hand, the ones who practice the truth come into the light so that it can be seen that their works were done through God. In 5:35 there is reference to John the Baptist as being a lamp that gives forth light. Jesus is also referred to as the Light of the World (8:12; 9:5) Jesus tells the crowd that it is necessary to walk in the light because the person that walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. He also tells the crowd to believe in the Light in order to become children of the light. Lastly in 12:46, he states that he has come as light into the world so that those who believe in him will not remain in darkness.

I pray that this Advent, you will take time to light advent candles at your table or at your bedtime and pray for more light in this world. Pray for the light of Christ to overcome all dark corners of despair and disobedience. Pray that our eyes will be open to this one and only true light, which is always shining, even when we cannot see.

Christmas lights are a big part of the culture of this season. We Deiberts usually spend one day simply buying the Christmas tree, getting it into a stand, and putting on lights. Then in a day or a week, we add ornaments. A tree with lights only is beautiful.

Ponder Jesus, the light of the world, as you put lights on your tree. See that activity not as one more thing to get done, but one more opportunity to dwell on the true light, who is came into the world and will come again to make all things bright.

Put candles in your windows and remember that Christ is always ready to welcome you home with warmth and love. Remember that in Christ’s light there is no hiding in the dark. Live with honesty and goodness in the light.

Cultivate the light of Christ within you, so that your light will shine for those who sit in darkness. Honor Christ in your life, such that nothing you say or do would be shameful in the light of Christ who loves all people. Let your light shine so that people will glorify the Lord of heaven and earth, the One who put the great lights of the sun and the moon and stars for you, the Lord whose brightness gives light to every day, whose glory might blind us if we could really see.

Come Light of the World, Messiah, strengthen my heart

through this waiting time, wash my soul clean,

heal me, and make me whole.

Come shine through me until my darkness is pushed back

and I walk in the light with you again.

Generosity

2 Corinthians 9:6-15
Gratitude Sunday
Elizabeth M. Deibert

You are generous people. You came to a new church where you knew you’d be asked to give more of your time, energy, and money. You could be sitting at home in your recliner, sipping coffee in your pjs. Or you could be sitting comfortably in a church that does not need everything you can give, a church that offers more for you and asks less of you. But with all the church choices out there for consumers of religion, here you are, choosing not to be a consumer. You have decided to be generous, to invest your time, energy, and money in these relationships, in this ministry to help Peace grow into our vision to be an intergenerational and diverse community of fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ who reach out with the good news of Christ’s love, who grow strong in the service of God and neighbor, who send one another out with the joy of the Holy Spirit.

You are a generous people. Some of you have served on more than one ministry of this church for four or five years or taken up major leadership roles for more than three year and we don’t want you to burn out, but we’re grateful for your generosity and tenacity. You have taken menial jobs and significant ones. You have picked up the pieces when others have been too buy or too tired to do all their part. And you’ve done it with gladness. You’ve given away 20% of budget to mission beyond this church in the last two years. You have volunteered countless hours to Mission Beth-El, Family Promise, and Habitat, and you’ve given many gifts in kind.

You are a generous people because you welcome all people in this fellowship and you are eager to get to know them. You give away more than a friendly smile. You are authentic. You are real. You pray for one another. You care for one another. You forgive one another, never allowing petting arguments to stand in the way of meaningful community. You know the names of the children and youth and are involved in their lives. You are interested in reaching out to your neighbors and colleagues and willing to build friendships with them, not just put all your energy in the easy friends with whom you see eye-to-eye.

You are a generous people because you are open to the ideas of others, to the musical and liturgical tastes of others, who have different worship experiences than yours. You would rather worship together in diversity than have folks divide along the traditional and contemporary worship lines. You made a commitment to be sometimes uncomfortable for the sake of others’ comfort, to work at this worship blending, to be generous of spirit toward people of all ages and interests and religious backgrounds. You are generous in trusting the Spirit at work in each other. And in your generosity, nearly all of you have discovered that you reap what you sow. For many of you, this is the first church, where you’ve had a strong sense of responsibility for the ministries of the church, and you never knew how joyful (and yes, occasionally a little burdensome) it could be. How much we have received back for the investment we’ve made of ourselves in this new church!

People often ask Richard and me why we would be involved in starting two new churches. Because this kind of intense involvement and deep trust in God is eminently rewarding. By the way, let me take a moment of personal privilege to thank you for the generous expression of appreciation lavished on Richard this week by many of you. How very kind of you to recognize the time and energy he has given in recent months to hold Peace and this pastor together as we made the transition. Thanks for generosity of staff who give more than their allotted time for Peace work. They give because they care about Peace’s vision. But most of all, thank each of you who are volunteering, who invest countless hours of willing labor, you empower the ministries of the whole church.

For a full year, our Stewardship Team has been encouraging us to remember that gratitude is what rocks the universe. We are called to be cheerful givers, to remember even in these hard economic times, that we have so much for which to be grateful and thereby so much to give. I’m here to tell you that every time I touch a gratitude rock, I am grateful for you. Peace Church would not exist apart from the generosity of the people in this room, who with the support of brothers and sisters in the presbytery, parent churches, and denomination, were able to sustain ministry at Living Lord Lutheran on Sunday nights, at Manatee Community College and in our homes in the Corporate Park for four plus years, and now here in our new ministry center in a great location.

We come to the end of our Stewardship season, but not to the end of our Gratitude. We have considered that with God, there will always be plenty. So we can give more, even though we have less security this year. Richard may not have started working, but we’ve decided to up our pledge from 200/week to 225/week. We are counting on God to provide all we need. We hear the prophet Elijah telling the widow of Zarephath that with God we will always have enough. We hear the Apostle Paul telling the Philippians and us that we can simplify our lives and learn be content in plenty and in want because of Christ who gives us strength. We can be filled with gratitude, and overflowing in generosity.

And that word generosity is the one which figures prominently in our text today from 2 Corinthians. Paul does not want the Corinthians to give because he is pressuring them. He wants them to give gladly and from the heart. He is convinced that the more they give, the more they will be enriched – that it is truly more blessed to give than to receive.


2 Corinthians 9:6-15

The point is this:

the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,

and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

7 Each of you must give as you have made up your mind,

not reluctantly or under compulsion,

for God loves a cheerful giver.

8 And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance,

so that by always having enough of everything,

you may share abundantly in every good work.

9 As it is written, "He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor;

his righteousness endures forever."

10 He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food

will supply and multiply your seed for sowing

and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

11 You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity,

which will produce thanksgiving to God through us;

12 for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints

but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God.

13 Through the testing of this ministry

you glorify God by your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ

and by the generosity of your sharing with them and with all others,

14 while they long for you and pray for you

because of the surpassing grace of God that he has given you.

15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!


It all starts with the surpassing grace of God. With being overwhelmed by the surpassing grace of God, such that you see it as an indescribable gift. If you start with the perspective that you deserved nothing and got everything, then you understand surpassing grace, the indescribable gift. If you thought you were dead and found out you were living by the gift of God, then you have gratitude for the indescribable gift. If you’re like the farmworker kid living in the crowded and run down mobile home and you receive your first brand new bike for Christmas, then you know the feeling of an indescribable gift. If you’re the one who always get Bs and Cs, and you finally make the A honor roll, you’ve can relate to surpassing grace. If you lost a job, or a house or and by the grace of God and the help of friends and family, you are still able to pay your bills and keep offering to, then you know the indescribable gift of God. If you’ve lost a marriage or a child or a close friend, and you are still able to wake up in the mornings with gratitude in your heart, then you know the gift better than most.

German pastor Martin Rinkart, who wrote Now Thank We All Our God, the hymn we will sing in closing, served in the walled town of Eilenburg during the horrors of the Thirty Years War of 1618-1648. Eilenburg became an overcrowded refuge for the surrounding area. The fugitives suffered from epidemic and famine. At the beginning of 1637, the year of the Great Pestilence, there were four ministers in Eilenburg. But one left his post for healthier areas and could not be persuaded to return. Pastor Rinkhart officiated at the funerals of the other two.

As the only pastor left, he often conducted services for as many as 40 to 50 persons a day--some 4,480 in all. In May of that year, his own wife died. By the end of the year, the refugees had to be buried in trenches without services. Yet, while living in a world dominated by death, Rinkart wrote this timeless prayer of thanksgiving for his children:
Now thank we all our God With hearts and hands and voices;
Who wondrous things hath done, In whom this world rejoices.
Who, from our mother's arms, Hath led us on our way,
With countless gifts of love, And still is ours today.

The first unofficial Thanksgiving was celebrated after great loss of life. Nearly half of those on the Mayflower had died either in route or in the harsh winter. The fifty who remained alive, thanks to the generosity of Native American friends, enjoyed a bountiful harvest that first autumn. They were grateful for what they had left.

We should never measure our own generosity by what we give but by what we have left. As your pastor I cannot measure my time by the hours I put in. If I did that, I would be constantly frustrated. No, I just make sure that I have enough time left to rest on Sunday nights and Monday mornings. I make sure I have a few afternoons or evenings left in a week to spend time with the family. It not how much money I give but whether I have left myself just enough money get by. And it is amazing how God supplies what we need when we actively trust and give generously. As Anne Frank said in her diary, “No one has ever become poor by giving.” When we give to God, we are just taking our hands off what already belongs to the Creator of heaven and earth, who blessed us. So we should give to God what’s right, not what’s left. : )

Some people say we should give til it hurts. But it seems from this passage, we learn to give until it feels good, until our hearts are so practiced at trusting that we are joyful and even cheerful, knowing that our lives are no longer in our hands, but in the Lord’s. Rejoice in the indescribable gifts of God and take the seeds God’s given you and cast them out, knowing that the more you cast out, the more you will reap. We give not to prove our devotion to God, but because we are filled with gratitude because of God. Every day breathe in gratitude and breathe out generosity. If you refuse to exhale generosity, you will not be able to take in more gratitude. Adam Hamilton is even more graphic in his illustration when he compares the expression of generosity to our daily digestive tract. He recommends no constipation or blockage when it comes to giving, but I’ll stick with image of respiration.

God is able to provide you everything in abundance, so exhale generosity and inhale in gratitude. Just keep breathing in and out deeply. Keep an inventory of the gifts of God, keep dancing in your heart, and keep reaching in your pocket for that gratitude rock to remind you that God has given you the best gift you’ll ever receive – everlasting love. This is love not intended to leave you as you are but love aimed at transforming you into the best person you can possibly be. God has become one with you in Jesus Christ and has taken on your life and your, to renew you in life and restore you in death. And because of God’s abundant love, there will always be enough of everything you need and even more than enough, when you share generously.

I’d like to end with a Thomas Merton quote:

To be grateful is to recognize the Love of God in everything he
has given us – and He has given us everything. Every
breath we draw is a gift of His love, every moment of
existence is a grace, for it brings with it immense graces
from Him. Gratitude therefore takes nothing for
granted, is never unresponsive, is constantly awakening
to new wonder and to praise of the goodness of God.
For the grateful person knows that Godis good,
not by hearsay but by experience. And that is what
makes all the difference.

Prayer:

Lord, teach me to be generous.
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to ask for reward,
save that of knowing that I do your will.

- Ignatius, 1491-1556

Contentment

1 Timothy 6:6-22
Stewardship Series: Gratitude
Elizabeth M. Deibert

O Lord, your Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Spirit of God, give us grace to receive your truth in faith and love, and strengthen to follow on the path you set before us; through Jesus Christ, Amen.

Can you walk through a store and buy nothing? Not even one small thing? Can you drive through a car dealership and feel content with the car you have? Can you open the refrigerator, and eat nothing. Can you go to a party and refuse alcohol? You can with practice. Yes, walk through the store, drive through the dealership, open the pantry full of food, go to the party, and chant the mantra we learned last week. In Jesus I have enough. In Christ, I am content. The Lord is my shepherd. I have everything you need. Our souls are searching for contentment and how can we find it? By resisting the temptation to find pleasure in all kinds of things. They are good gifts from God, but when we give them too much power, they distract us from the love of God and keep us from becoming the people God intends us to be.

It is so easy to see the problem of contentment when a child is being pushed down the aisle of a store, screaming for a new toy he or she doesn’t need. What is more difficult to admit is that most of us adults have not grown up. Oh, we don’t make a scene. Because nobody is telling us “no.” We adults just go and buy, because we are free to do so, until the credit card bill comes in, or the bank account is tight and it is time to write a check to keep your commitment to the church and there’s not enough money left. I know what I’m talking about here. I’ve done it. I’ve made impulsive $100 purchases. I’ve even talked myself into NEEDING a new car, because the old one might start having problems. I’ve justified purchasing new clothes, just because I thought that “new clothes feeling” would boost my mood. I’ve walked through the grocery store, picking up anything that looked tasty or interesting with no thought for budget. I have gone to the refrigerator, looking for satisfaction in there.

“No” is a great word and we can learn to say it with pleasure, no a morbid self-denial. “No, I don’t need that. I have all I need to be content. In Jesus I have enough.”

In our Philippians passage last week, Paul spoke of contentment, saying “Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have.” (Phil. 4:11)

Content? Little and plenty? Any and every circumstance? Hungry and well-fed? Paul knows the secret –that in Jesus he has enough. That’s contentment – leaning hard into your relationship with Jesus Christ, so you’re not looking for ultimate satisfaction anywhere else or in anyone else. Hear now what Paul tells his younger friend, Timothy, about contentment:




1 Timothy 6:6-16

Of course, there is great gain in godliness combined with contentment;

7 for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it;

8 but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these.

9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation

and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires

that plunge people into ruin and destruction.

10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil,

and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith

and pierced themselves with many pains.

11 But as for you, man of God, shun all this;

pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.

12 Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called

and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

13 In the presence of God, who gives life to all things,

and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession,

I charge you 14 to keep the commandment without spot or blame

until the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which he will bring about at the right time—

he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

16 It is he alone who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light,

whom no one has ever seen or can see; to him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

The problem described by Paul to Timothy is the relentless pursuit of wealth, the love of money, the desire for more things. It is not that the things themselves are sinful. It is the uncontrolled desire for them, the driving passion for them which keeps us from putting love of God and neighbor first. Paul describes it as a fight. It is a battle to hold onto faith, to fight off idolatry, putting other things ahead of God. And if Paul and Timothy, have a battle, we’ve got a nuclear war, because everywhere we turn, people are telling us that acquiring more stuff and upgrading what we have will make us happy. Some folks call it Affluenza and unfortunately there’s only one vaccination which helps you prevent it. Filling your life’s veins with so much of God that you have no time, no money, and no energy for Affluenza is the only cure for this deadly virus, especially this time of year.

Now in this deflated economy of the last two years, nearly all of us have had to re-think our priorities and scale back. And our hearts should be filled with gratitude, because this struggle for more self-control is so good for us. I know that’s just what you’ve been thinking – how wonderful it is that you are upside down in your house and have lost 1/3 of your retirement account. But you know, only when we find a way to live on less, do we have the opportunity to discover true contentment with God. When we are not pursuing wealth and all the symbols of wealth, then we can see that it is intimacy with Jesus Christ that we really need.

Adam Hamilton, Methodist minister and author of the book, “Enough” being studied in one of our Lively learning classes today, refers to the two tents we can choose to live in. We can live in contentment or discontentment. If we build intimacy with Christ, then our contentment will grow, but if we live according to the values of materialism, we will never have enough stuff. We’ll be discontent with our possessions and with the people around us. We will always be hungry for more. Bob Hughes wore a t-shirt to choir that says “Hungry” on front and on back it says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” Those words are from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount.

Paul says, “There is great gain in godliness combined with contentment.” He tells Timothy to turn away from the lust for more stuff and to go after, to be hungry for righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.

Think about some of thing that frustrate us: heavy traffic, interrupted internet access, not finding what you’re looking for in the grocery store, waiting in line at department store. In some countries, people would be thankful for paved roads, for any access to internet, for having fresh food and clean water, and for the clothes they already have. We are among the wealthiest 10% of the world’s population with more than 80% percent of the world’s resources. Don’t we have enough really? Can’t we be content?

Contentment, you see, is not the fulfillment of everything you want but the realization of the abundance that you already have. When you grab your gratitude rock and realize how very much you have, compared with most of the world, then you can wait until your shoes are worn and have holes before buying again. You can say “no” to a new car idea. You can be satisfied with your furniture and your clothes and your leftovers. You can be like the 10 year old boy who knocked on the Frueh’s door on Halloween. Gretchen offered him two candy bars because his pillow case was empty, but he said just one because he wanted to make sure she had enough for everyone. He was in sharp contrast to a group of kids who knocked on my door and though their bags were full, they reached for as much as they could grab.

You see, discontentment is a struggle in plenty and in want. Discontentment is a heart issue, and can only be dealt with when the heart is seeking God first and submitted to living confidently and abundantly in the palm of God’s hand. Contentment is not just closing your mouth to complaints. Contentment is building up gratitude, speaking positively about God’s work in your life even in times of struggle, when you feel sorely lacking.

To the degree that I able to buy as much as I want, or consume as much as I want, or entertain myself as much as I want, I am not free but trapped. That’s why we need to give more away.

We need to put ourselves in a position to discover “the rare jewel of contentment,” (as Jeremiah Burroughs, Puritan writer theologian writes) Contentment is discovered when we resist the trappings of our world, the affluenza, the lust for more and more stuff.

You heard the good news, didn’t you? We do have all the money we need for Peace’s 2011 church budget. Isn’t that great? But the bad news is it is still in your pockets and bank accounts, stocks and bonds. It is in that monthly paycheck or that retirement account, but in order to release it for higher purposes, you’ll have to cut out some of your discretionary spending. You might feel like the two year old in ToysRUs but I trust you will not scream. We have more than enough as a church to preserve our commitment to 20% mission giving, but the bad news is that we will not unless we learn more about saying “no” to ourselves.

These are challenging times. You can look for what’s missing in your life, or you can rejoice in all the things you already have. You can wish for different circumstances, or you can look for what God is teaching you in your current circumstances. Courageous and generous people of Peace, let us be so full of God’s Spirit, so content, so full of gratitude that we have more than enough to share. May our contentment keep our mission budget up-sized, even in this down-sized economy. May our contentment keep this church fully staffed with talented people, even as we make up the $60,000 gap which comes with being a grown-up church, financially independent of denominational support funding. May our contentment keep us rejoicing in the challenge and the opportunity of this wonderful new worship and ministry center, where we can reach out to new friends.

It all depends on your attitude of gratitude. It all depends on your trust in God. Life is not about having the most toys or the most financial security. Life is about building an intimate relationship of dependency on the Lord, the only One who will completely satisfy your deepest longings.

There’s an old story of a rich entrepreneur who was disturbed to find a fisherman sitting lazily beside his boat. "Why aren't you out there fishing?" he asked. "Because I've caught enough fish for today," said the fisherman. "Why don't you catch more fish than you need?' the rich man asked. "What would I do with them?"

"You could earn more money," came the impatient reply, "and buy a better boat so you could go deeper and catch more fish. You could purchase nylon nets, catch even more fish, and make more money. Soon you'd have a fleet of boats and be rich like me." The fisherman asked, "Then what would I do?" "You could sit down and enjoy life," said the rich man. "What do you think I'm doing now?" the fisherman replied as he stared off with a smile of contentment. (Our Daily Bread, May 18, 1994)

Stay hungry, my friends, stay hungry for God’s righteousness. Don’t give in to affluenza. Fight the good fight with the medicine of contentment. Grab hold of the life that really is life and cling with all your might! Cast care aside; lean on your guide, the King of kings will for you provide. To You, Lord of lords be all honor and glory and every ounce of our devotion. Amen.

The Secret

Philippians 4:10-20
Stewardship: Gratitude Attitude
Elizabeth M. Deibert

O Lord, your Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Spirit of God, give us grace to receive your truth in faith and love, and strengthen to follow on the path you set before us; through Jesus Christ, Amen.

Many weeks when I sit down to write a sermon, I feel like something’s missing. I begin to worry that I have nothing worth sharing. Oh sure, I’ve read a few commentaries. I’ve read other people’s sermons on this text. I’ve read books about the particular theological topic. I’ve prayerfully pondered the scripture, sometimes with help from you. Yet often I feel empty, like there’s nothing I have to give. But every week God provides something, sometimes just a morsel and sometimes a little more, and it is enough. God comes through even when I am insufficient. And the secret is believing that to be the case. The secret is knowing God will be provide enough, even when I don’t have enough.

Do you think Paul had any idea that the letters he wrote from prison would be canonized as Holy Scripture, with the same authority as the Torah he learned as a Jewish boy? Did he have any idea when he sat unjustly locked up, closed off from the world, that his most joyful letter to the Philippians would offer encouragement to people 2000 years later? How could he know that some of his words would become a mantra, a slogan on an athlete’s shoe, a piece of art in calligraphy, hanging on the wall, to give support to people feeling weak. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” The secret is knowing you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you, that you can endure all struggles, that you can make it.

Many of us feel like we don’t have enough time or enough energy or enough money or enough patience or enough strength to carry on. We are tired and worn down by life’s complexities and conflicts. But scripture tells us God will supply every need of ours, not according to a limited supply, but according to God’s riches in glory. The secret is counting on that, even in the hard times. The secret is believing that and being filled with gratitude for that.

If you know the One to whom you belong, and if you know just how good and powerful and reliable your God is, anxiety and fear will not overtake you. You will sing God’s praise even in a dark and dingy prison cell or whatever painful, difficult or limited position in which you find yourself. Hear the Apostle, a man who has learned secret of gratitude, contentment, and trust in God. He is thanking the Philippians for their support, and telling them that he’s more than okay because he knows the secret.


Philippians 4:10-20

I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me;

indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it.

11 Not that I am referring to being in need;

for I have learned to be content with whatever I have.

12 I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty.

In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry,

of having plenty and of being in need.

13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

14 In any case, it was kind of you to share my distress.

15 You Philippians indeed know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia,

no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you alone.

16 For even when I was in Thessalonica,

you sent me help for my needs more than once.

17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that accumulates to your account.

18 I have been paid in full and have more than enough;

I am fully satisfied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent,

a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

19 And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours

according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

20 To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.



You have heard me talk about my piano teacher, who was the church organist and my mentor in high school. She taught me the secret. She lost her mother to whom she was very close to Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Then shortly thereafter she found out her husband was having an affair and their marriage ended.

Then her middle child, a son, took a trip with college buddies and came home in a serious depression. Then that same son, after stabilizing and making plans for graduate school, got hit and killed by a car while he was cycling. And in the last decade she has suffered from chronic fatigue syndrome. She is unable to play the organ or teach piano lessons anymore. She is unable to spend more than about 2-3 hours out of bed. She is concerned about her financial future as a single woman, living on social security with disability. But she is content and full of faith, one who prays and who sends letters of encouragement to people like me. She knows that God is providing everything she needs. She knows the secret of gratitude in difficult circumstances.

Paul tells the Philippians: “I rejoice, I am not in need, I am content, I know the secret of contentment in any and all circumstances, whether I am in plenty or in want, hungry or well-fed. I can manage through Christ who strengthens me. I have more than enough. I am fully satisfied.” How can a man in prison in the 1st century say that?

He goes on to tell them in his letter of thanks that it is not the gift he seeks but the blessing that comes to them when they give. And that’s what I most want to say to you today. When Peace asks you to give, when you receive in the mail or when you pick up at church, an envelope inviting you to make a pledge, a non-binding pledge, we are asking for you to offer a blessing for the church. It is no surprise to you that I would say that the church depends on your gifts to carry out our ministries. But we are not so concerned for the church as we are for the freedom and blessing that come to you when you increase your trust in God. Oh, sure the church needs your gifts (just like Paul needed help from the Philippians) but it is not the gift we seek as much as your growing faith. Because if our faith is not growing, then we do not have a church worth sustaining.

Paul calls this growing trust, this faith, profit. He says, “Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that accumulates to your account.” The Greek word translated “profit” is in other contexts translated “fruit.” The fruit of faith is the only profit, reward which really matters in the end. Having a lot of money or possessions will not guarantee happiness. A fruitful life is what we need, what will generate meaning and purpose.

Daniel Gilbert, a Harvard psychology professor and the author of Stumbling on Happiness, says “Research reveals that memory is less like a collection of photographs than it is like a collection of impressionist paintings rendered by an artist who takes considerable license with his subject.” So are your impressions that you have enough? In the painting of your life’s history, is the sky is blue or are there always dark clouds and rain in that scene? Is the cup overflowing? Or is it bone dry? Do you reinforce your contentment with Paul by expressing gratitude throughout the day, reminding yourself how little it takes to satisfy your needs or are you high maintenance, never getting all you want? Poverty isn't being short on money; real poverty is never having enough. That’s when you need a little gratitude rock in your pocket to remind you to rejoice in every little gifts God gives you each day. If we have a proper view of God's Providence, we will see the hand of God and the heart of God miraculously working good out of every single thing, out of all the experiences of our lives.

As a church we started talking about gratitude and carrying around these symbolic “gratitude rocks” a year ago. It’s all about the attitude with which we approach life. Richard and I have in the last year developed a habit of rejoicing in the little changes in the garden, paying more attention to the amazing work of God evidenced in flowers and trees. Generally speaking, we take walks together rather than eating out together, a little simplification of life.

Rather than fretting over the time it has taken for his medical licensure in Florida, we have been extremely grateful for the time we’ve enjoyed. We discipline ourselves to control spending, but not to spend too much time looking at the numbers. There are the simple pleasures of a shared bowl of oatmeal for lunch – cheap, healthy, filling, and uniting us with people around the world, who are grateful for simple meals like that.

I lapse from time to time and worry over the fact that he’s not earning money, and then I remember how wonderful it has been to have his support in serving the church’s needs. In these last several months of transition, I’m not sure how I would have fared without his steady involvement. In my own life, as I have mentioned.

In the church, we can be grateful for the unique and special people and programs we already have here. We can express gratitude for the gifts of an intimate congregation, rather than wishing we were larger. We can be grateful for the amazing ministries of this congregation and for the volunteers and staff who keep them going. Let’s invite our friends and neighbors to a plenteous congregation, rather than a needy congregation. We have plenty. We’re not perfect, but we know how to be content in any and all circumstances. The 23rd Psalm says it: The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.

Contentment, you see, is not about how much you have but how much gratitude you have for what you have. The secret is knowing enough is enough and living with a generous and expressive gratitude for the life and love you have been given in Jesus Christ, who united our humanity to God’s divinity in such a profound and mysterious way that the world will never be the same. You will always have enough when you turn to the One who loves you most, who fully satisfies every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. The real secret is that you belong to Jesus Christ who knows you and loves you deeply and that is always enough. With your overflowing gratitude for life, whisper the secret of Christ’s bountiful love to every person with whom you have contact and especially to those closest to you.