Pastor Dwaine Bruns
Trinity Sunday
June 3, 2007
Scripture Reference: Psalm 8
In the weeks leading up to this Building Fund Appeal Commitment Sunday, we have heard some wonderful Temple Talks in worship as members of Resurrection shared with us their reflections about what this congregation has meant in their lives of faith.
Gene Boysen shared the image in his dream of the members of this congregation being those who carry and protect him in times of danger
The Haynes Family: Frank and Angela, Kari and Anna offered their perspectives on how this church touches and enriches their lives.
Mark Boe spoke of how this congregation has been a community that has brought him deeper into the life of faith.
And there was the first Temple Talk that we heard: Gina Anderson and her daughter Lydia, sharing a simple prayer that Lydia had learned in Sunday School. In fact I’d like to remember it with you today.
Thank you God for giving me enough.
Now, as I said, it is a simple prayer – but I have to admit that these words have intruded on my thoughts countless times over these past few weeks. Each word of that prayer is filled with so much to think about.
Thank you – It reminds of how often I go through my days without saying thank you enough. My life is filled with blessings, but sometimes I take them for granted.
God – It brings to mind that the source of the blessings that I enjoy is God, the author of every good and perfect gift.
For giving me – The words help me to remember that my life, and all the things that sustain are indeed, gifts.
Enough – Enough, this is the word that I have thought about the most. God gives me enough. Perhaps, even more striking to me than the word itself, is this sign that goes with it. (motion: make a cup with one hand and pass the other hand over the top of it) Enough. It is a picture of a cup filled up to the top. Enough to provide all that I need.
And maybe that why I have thought about this word so much; I wonder if I believe it. Or if you believe it. Do we think that God gives us enough?
I wonder about that, because every day we hear a different message. Countless voices tell us that we don’t have enough – that we need more. Every commercial we see, hear or read, seeks to convince us that we need something more – their product. Our lives are incomplete and unfulfilled unless we have what they are selling. But I think it goes even deeper than that. The very culture that we live in tells us that enough isn’t really enough. We need more. More wealth, more possessions, more things, more stuff. More.
Can we really pray this prayer, and mean what we say? Thank you God for giving me enough.
Maybe we find some helpful ideas in our Psalm for today. In this wonderful text, we hear amazing words about a God who gives us enough. In fact, there is one word in particular that captures my attention in Psalm 8: Mindful. We find that word in verse 4 of our reading – What are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? And in that verse, the writer of this Psalm tells us that the one whose glory exceeds the heavens – who set the moon and stars in their places, is at the same time mindful of each one of us. God knows us, recognizes us, loves us.
Perhaps the reason I find this whole idea of God’s mindfulness remarkable is that mindfulness is not always one of my best attributes. Just ask Jeanne, my wife. I’m one of those husbands who has no better than a 50-50 chance of guessing correctly when she asks me, “Do you notice anything different about me?” But thankfully, God is not like me. God chooses to pay attention to us, to our joys and sorrows, and the seemingly ordinary moments of our lives. Because we are incredibly important to God, God’s attention is always upon us.
In an article written by Mark Ralls, I read a wonderful story this week. It told of a woman named Alice who was working at a camp for terminally ill children. There she befriended a young severely disabled girl who she remembered simply as “L.” One day, while “L” was absorbed in a game of Duck, Duck, Goose, Alice spotted a letter that “L’s” parents had written her. She couldn’t resist reading the first line. If God had given us all the children in the world to choose from, L, we would have only chosen you. Alice passed the note to a fellow counselor, whispering breathlessly, Quick, read this. It’s the secret of life.
And it seems to me that the writer of Psalm 8 suggests that this is how God sees us. God delights in us. God chooses to love and cherish us, and never wavers in that decision. This mindfulness is the “enough” that God gives us.
Of course, sometimes we’d still like a little more than enough. I saw that in myself in this past year as I struggled with illness. On some days, the promise of God’s love didn’t really seem like enough. I wanted answers. I wanted cures. I wanted to hear that the diagnosis of cancer was a mistake. I wanted more. But as I look back, I see that God’s “enough” was there. In the love of my family. In the support and prayers of this congregation. In the care of medical professionals. And perhaps most importantly, in the presence of a God who promised that no matter what I experienced, I would never be alone. I would be held in hands of eternal love. And what I learned, was that those gifts were indeed, enough.
But I think there’s even more to learn from Psalm 8. Not only is God mindful of us, we are also blessed with the good gifts of God’s wonderful creation. The air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, the work we do, the wealth and possessions that enrich our lives -- this Psalm invites us to see all those things as gifts from God’s creative and loving hands. God offers the world to us as a sign of divine love. Even on those days when we don’t remember that our lives are sustained by God’s blessings, the gifts keep on coming. We have what we need. So we pray this prayer. Thank you God for giving me enough. Enough love, enough forgiveness, enough food, enough wealth, enough!
Maybe I can use a balloon to give a picture of what I’ve been talking about. Imagine that we are filling up a balloon with all that God gives us:
Love – forgiveness – grace – financial resources – possessions – food – family and friends. The balloon is full – almost ready to burst. It is a great picture of what God has given. But the question is, now what do we do?
One alternative is to just tie this off. Enjoy it. Hang on to it. But it seems to me that in the scriptures, God offers another idea. There we hear things like: You are the light of the world. You are blessed to be a blessing. And the point seems to be that when God pours these gifts into our lives, they are meant to be shared – not merely kept for ourselves. When God gives us enough, it isn’t just enough for us. It’s meant to be enough for others too.
So we share the love that God has given us. Just as God is mindful of us, we grow in being mindful of others and their needs. We want others to know that the same amazing God who loves and chooses us, also loves and chooses them. So we invite our neighbors to worship. We take a portion of the gifts we have received from God and support the work of our congregation as it shares the Gospel of Jesus with this community. We offer our pledges today to our Building Fund Appeal, because we trust that this building is a tool for us in sharing the love that God has for the world.
In fact, think about this balloon again. I don’t think God intends that all of the gifts we have received just stay here – contained for our enjoyment alone. Instead I believe this is what God intends. (Let go of balloon and let it fly around the room.) That we let go. That we share. That we spread these gifts around. That we joyfully have a part in the amazing things that God is doing in the world.
Now, maybe it seems scary to do that. Perhaps God gives me enough, but will I still have enough if I let go, if I share? But the wonderful thing is that God’s gifts don’t run out. The unlimited supply of God’s blessings comes anew every day. We can share that love. We can give generously, because God will keep filling us up over and over again. As we step out in faith, we discover that God does indeed give us enough.
So I invite you to pray the prayer with me one more time.
Thank you God for giving me enough.
Amen
Note: Acknowledgement is given for insights used in preparing this message to Mark Ralls, Christian Century, May 15, 2007.