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    Mar 08, 2015

    The God Story 3: Rising Action

    The God Story 3: Rising Action

    Passage: Exodus 16:2-16

    Speaker: Rev. Vivian McCarthy, Pastor

    Series: The God Story

    Category: God's Relationship with You

    Keywords: action, god story

    The God Story continues this week as we discuss the rising action!

    A clergy study group was meeting weekly, and we had agreed to spend some time working together on case studies. Sounded pretty good! We would share a church situation and examine what went well, what could have gone better and next steps, if any were needed. It was going pretty well. We had several weeks behind us, and we had gotten better at digging in so that our work would result in significant professional development. I thought we had begun to trust each other more in the process. Do you have any idea how hard it is for pastors to trust each other with things that aren’t going well in our ministry? I actually suspect that we are some of the worst!

    So, we gathered as usual on this particular day, and the presenter began to share his case study. He went on and on about the problem with the church group and how they didn’t do what he knew they needed to and how at least one of the members was undermining the work of the group.

    One, and then another of the colleagues offered some pretty good suggestions and probed for how the pastor was working in the situation for the good of the congregation. At every suggestion, the presenter had one reason after another that the suggestion or question raised just wasn’t appropriate for the situation.

    I will never forget what came next. One of the senior members of the group, a pastor who had probably 20 years’ more experience than I did at that time, all of a sudden said, with a good bit of frustration and aggravation in his louder-than-usual tone, “Wait a minute! What’s really going on here!?!”

    I was stunned. And, if I’m truthful, I will admit that I just wanted to crawl under my chair. It was a seriously awkward moment – silence reigned for at least 30 seconds. Looking back, that was a defining moment – a moment when someone had the guts to ask whether that pastor was going to leave behind what was necessary for new life – or not.

    The Israelites were on the journey to the Promised Land. They had escaped! God gave them what they needed: a cloud to lead them during the day, a pillar of fire to lead them at night, manna from heaven so they wouldn’t be hungry, and water from a rock so they wouldn’t be thirsty. Were they satisfied? No! They wanted to go back so they could eat cucumbers, for heaven’s sake! God had provided everything they needed for the journey – for reaching their goal. But the Israelites were not satisfied with the answer. They just wanted to go back – back to what they knew, what was comfortable, what was reliable, even though what they had was enslavement!

    So, here’s our first question for today – not for Tweeting but to help develop our thoughts – use the Musings page to jot your thoughts for this question:

    when have you known that God was leading you to a new place and you have resisted – or maybe even gone backwards?

    I don’t know what it is about us humans, but most of us do it. We work hard to move forward but then we are drawn back to our old patterns of behavior. For me, cake and potatoes can be my Egypt, tempting me back to my old eating habits. And I always pay a price, even if that price is a huge ding to my self-image and self-confidence, not to mention my cholesterol!

    God provided what the Israelites needed in the wilderness: a leader, directions, food and water. So, here’s our first Tweet question for today:

    Think again about the time you considered a moment ago. What had God provided that you needed for that journey?

    Think about it this way. When we have a dream – a goal – we are on a journey every bit as challenging as the journey to the Promised Land. If we pursue the dream – or the calling – we will be in a transition, and times of transition are never easy, never comfortable, rarely smooth. As a mother who felt led to change directions from a fairly competent church musician and educator to pastor, I can tell you that the years of that transition were not easy. My children will tell you that!

    In terms of the shape of a great story, transition and conflict signal the rising action – give the story some tension and interest. As the action rises, as the tension increases, it gets harder and harder to put the book down – or to wait for the next episode on Netflix!

    During transition times it is SO easy to lose sight of the goal, to allow the noise of competing desires and the lure of the known to drown out the power of the possible – the possibility of new life and the fulfillment that comes from answering the call of God.

    There is just so much that can get in our way. Those dreams we talked about last week seem strong in our hearts and minds. We are led toward the Promised Land, and God provides help, guidance, sustenance. But then we find ourselves seeking the immediate – that cake, that cigarette, that car, that high, that pleasure – would be/feel/taste so good. The other kids will like or accept me if I do what they do. I will get that promotion if I compromise my ethics – or if I make my coworker look bad. If I give in, I just know he will make me be his girlfriend. I really want that – I’m just sure we can stretch our budget one more time. I really want to go to Rome, but I’ve waited this long, a little longer is okay.

    Our second Tweet question for today – use your phone or a Tweet card or maybe just jot it on your Connection Card if you want me to pray for you more privately:

    What is standing in the way of your dream of a Promised Land today?

    Here’s the thing. As Jacob Alexander says in our devotional guide, we find God when we are at our hungriest. Jesus had something to say about that. He said, I am the bread of life.  Jesus has what we need to make our dreams come true – to find new life – to reach our Promised Land.

    It may come as a surprise to some of you to hear me say that, just like everyone else, clergy don’t always pay attention to their hunger – their need. The friend I mentioned at the beginning of this meditation never did put aside the barriers. He didn’t realize how hungry he way, and he would not allow others “in.” He wasn’t able to be vulnerable. He is no longer in ministry. It was a huge loss – for him but also for the church. He was a gifted, forward-thinking pastor, and I miss him.

    Remember that I said you could ask our children about how hard that transition was in our lives? Well, on the day that I graduated from Wesley Seminary, ready to take my first appointment, there was a worship service in the seminary chapel for the graduates and their families, led by one of my favorite professors. She began the meditation time of the service by reminding us of John Wesley’s practice of asking the question: how’s your soul today?

    A couple of people stood and said what was on their hearts, and after a few minutes of those witnesses, our son, who was 10 at the time, stood up. Rich and I looked at each other behind him since the kids were seated in between us, and we shared one of those “oh my gosh!” moments. We were a little worried about what he might say.

    That time was hard. Many times I wasn’t as available as I wanted to be for my kids. Money was very tight. I fell asleep again and again with my highlighter in my hand – and my bedspreads had many yellow and pink blobs on them as witness to my failure to stay conscious. I can’t tell you how tempting it was at times to just bag it.

    It was as if God was speaking a word of encouragement to my heart. When the professor acknowledged Dennis, he said, “This has really been hard. But, it has all been worth it.” Milk and honey from the mouth of a ten-year-old. Thanks be to God.