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Do we as disciples of Jesus in this day and age consider ourselves living into a “theology of hope?” Can we truthfully claim to aspire to be beacons of light and encouraging hope to those we care for in our lives? Or are we suffering in our endurance shaking like those reeds of grass in a graceless wilderness that has done everything and anything, to break our hope? Breaking our hope down to become that broken Hallelujah in a broken world needing to find a way out of the darkness… Here, is where we are now.
The other day I was looking at the Alumni news from my
first masters’ degree program some 20 plus years ago. This was my MFA for
teaching college level art. In the memoriam, there was a picture of a young man
I knew, who was a very talented poet in his own right. I knew him well back then and some of his
family who were intertwined in the crazy life style of surviving in the arts
and poetry scene. Unlike many on the
scene, he was promising and his efforts were starting to begin to pay off. Every other day during that era of the Chicago
art scene, you’d see his name in the lineup of featured readers and even hear
about his up and coming publications.
Then, as no one ever expected, the world completely
changed with the events of 9/11. The art
world slowly began its journey of “disappearing” out of sight and mind abroad,
and with this “withering” came the onset of despair. Despair took an all too tragic form for this
man in particular, first nearly destroying his family and then finally taking
him this past month due to prescription pain pills addiction and alcohol abuse. The recent picture on this site exampled the
ravages of someone slipping away from hope into complete hopelessness. This was the tragic picture of a (spiritually)
broken man.
His own brother, who was a practicing textile artist,
gave up on him years ago. These things
tragically sometimes take place in families.
We all too often become the judge and jury, out of our own frustration,
and wind up turn our backs on those we love.
We turn our backs just at the other person’s breaking point gives way—when
they are desperate and need us the most to come to their aid! I was a sad witness on occasion to their
family battles. What the young poet really
needed was to be placed into rehab… but his own brother gave up on him, far too
soon. Washing his hands of the anger and frustration of his brother’s decline
into physical and spiritual despair.
One of my last encounters with the troubled poet was some
15 years ago. At the time, which was the
norm and joy of being active in the Chicago Art world; it was customary to go
to the gallery openings and catch a poetry reading or two on a Friday
night. That is just what I did and ran
into him at Gwenda Jay Addington Gallery in the River North. It was apparent that he had already spent a
long time cleaning out the free bars of a few other galleries and was visibly “wasted…” I felt very sad for him and was concerned
about him getting home so I gave him a ride.
When he got out of the car, he could barely walk to the door yet alone
open it. Thankfully his roommate saw him
wobbling towards the door and helped him in.
That was the last time I saw him till the other day in
this online newsletter…. What struck me
to have the Holy Spirit fuse this sad remnant into my message here today was
how we live our lives teetering upon that fine line either through hope or
broken by despair. This despair perhaps
being fueled by a sense of expectations never completed or broken dreams due to
a ‘delusion of grandeur,’ not to be ever fulfilled… Hope as well, we must
remember, is the pulse of faith. Like the saying goes: “Oh Ye of little faith!” That mustard seed, once again, succumbing to
the failure of our bad spiritual gardening!
Let us now go into that scene where John the Baptist was just
imprisoned by Herod Agrippa for basically pushing the envelope on lecturing him
for his adultery with his brother’s wife…
The outlook wasn’t looking good for John at all. He couldn’t help himself though, in preaching
to Herod to turn away from his grave sins.
In the meantime, perhaps he was starting to feel a little anxiety, as
well, about his expectations of the Messiah to come… so as we know, he sent his
disciples to ask Jesus: “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for
another?” And as we know, 4Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John
what you hear and see: 5the blind receive their sight, the lame
walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor
have good news brought to them. 6And blessed is anyone who takes no
offense at me.”
What Jesus was telling those disciples of John as well as
the crowds gathered, was that God is with them, at work in their very midst! And
there is a New Hope, a New Horizon to come for all of creation! Jesus, as the light and the joy of the world
to restore all creation, by and through, His gift of Grace. Wouldn’t that have been a wonderful reminder
to have heard in our hearts the days, weeks and months after the horror and
transition in American history due to 9/11?
It would probably been even more wonderful for the troubled poet and
others like him to have heard and experienced as well. They didn’t have enough fight within them to
shake their fists at the heavens like Job and work out their frustrations
through a suffering, enduring patience that would have brought them back to
healing and spiritual restoration. Perhaps as well, they didn’t have faith in
themselves yet alone others, to encourage and care for them to really help them…
There’s that element of human tragedy—not having faith
enough in ourselves yet alone faith enough in God to begin to feel spiritually
complete. The will to live is that great
battleground where the evil one works very hard at fading away purpose and
completion in the human psyche. The
reality of hell is that it is both a graceless wilderness and one devoid of
purpose. We can’t sit back however and wish for a “super hero action figure” to
come on scene and rescue us from the perils of humanity… We must stand up through our faith and fight
the Good fight. Fighting the Good fight
spiritually through living Hope is the gracious fruit of love, compassion,
mercy, kindness, etc. to and for, the Glory of God!
There will be many moments, signs and prophecy strewn
throughout our lives, as both a point of learning, as well as challenge for us,
as disciples of Jesus. Are we preparing that way, path for the Lord to reign/
work through our lives or are we just wanting to give up? Quitting is so Old Nature, it makes sense at
the height of our anxieties and despair to cave into. We don’t have to argue with someone, we can
just dismiss them and turn away, moving on our own self-righteous path! Certainly no royal highway, certainly not one
going into the light of the Kingdom….
What is important to know and open our hearts to hear—God has never given
up on us and never will! We give up on
each other as well as ourselves far too often…
How can we mend that broken Hallelujah in a broken world?
How do we fill those cracks, gaps within our lives? These spiritual questions
remind me of that wonderful pottery that the Japanese make which fills the
imperfections and the cracks with precious metals such as Gold and Silver. What if we take that shaken and all too often
challenged faith and fill those cracks and fractures of pain and doubt with the
love and hope of Christ Jesus—our true joy and light in this dark world! Can
you just imagine what those mended vessels can now carry? The Gospel of love to rise in the east—a New
Creation and a New World to come—HOPE restored.
I talked with the sister of the poet who died this past
month. It was lovely to hear that she,
along with her brother, will be publishing the last book that poet just
finished a few weeks before his death.
Through the proceeds they are hoping to send a sizable donation to the
local AA program and group that her brother only attended once and left… The hopefulness there, is that it will
encourage others to not give up, either on themselves, or others who NEED to
get help! Life can be seen as suffering trying to be hopeful, or known as the
glass half-empty thinking… Or it can be seen, with the bright light of Christ
shining fully through it—as an enduring, encouraging and enlightening hope that
can move mountains, plant and spread Joy. This faith is our New Nature fully reaped—God’s
ultimate purpose for our lives lived through His Gospel of Grace.
AMEN
Let us Pray,
Gracious and Loving Lord Jesus,
Let us hear and see your signs, ambassadors and revelations
Meant to guide, encourage and enlighten our hearts
To harbor an enduringly patient hope
Help us to be faithful gardeners to that which You have
planted
Help us to never despair and turn our backs against one
another
May we realize all of that which
You have done for us in and throughout our lives
May we grow to become that still-speaking voice of the
Gospel
Out in the world for Your Kingdom’s sake
Amen
December 11th,
2016; 3rd Sunday in Advent; Year A; SOLA Lectionary
Sermon By:
Reverend Nicole A.M. Collins
Psalm 146;
Isaiah 35:1-10; James 5:7-11 & Matthew 11:2-15
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