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| 2 Lent 12 March, 2006 The Rev. Robert C. Granfeldt |
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As I was beginning to work on my sermon for today, I found myself thinking of a line
from an old song – a “golden oldie”, in fact, from, of all people Sonny and Cher: “And
the beat goes on; and the beat goes on.”
‘Way back at the beginning of the year, we had an Old Testament Lesson from the 1st
Book of Samuel. It was the story in which the young boy who would grow up to be the
great prophet Samuel – the man responsible for the birth of the kingdom of Israel –
was called by the Lord God.
Some weeks later I mentioned that lesson when a similar story came up in the
lectionary – this one about the prophet Elijah – hiding in the mountains from his foes
until the Lord spoke to him and told him what to do.
Both cases, I said, illustrated a need we all have: to learn to listen. This, I said, is
basic to all spirituality – the need to learn simply to quiet the noise around us and in
us, so that we can be still, and listen to God speaking within us.
Our lessons seemed to be drawing us toward prayer, toward looking at the subject of
prayer, and to that particular need in prayer – that need to learn to listen! That need
to learn to be still, to still one’s tongue, to still one’s thoughts, and simply, to listen!
To listen for that still, small voice that speaks within each one of us, the voice of God
calling us into being, calling us to be.
And today, “the beat goes on,” as we return to the theme of learning to pray – but a
step further on!
There is a phrase in today’s reading from the book of Genesis that has long
interested me – no: fascinated me.
The story, itself is well known, and often preached. Abraham and his wife, Sarah, in
their old age, and after many, many promises from God, have finally been blessed
with a child of their own – a long awaited son! But now God has, unexpectedly and
inexplicably, required that son, back! He directs Abraham to take this beloved child
out into the wilderness, on the mountainside, and to make of him a human sacrifice!
As our lesson opens, God calls Abraham’s name, and Abraham answers, “Here am I.”
Told what the Lord requires, he does it, without question. And later, when all is ready,
and the knife is poised to strike, the Lord calls his name, once more, and Abraham
answers, again, “Here am I” – and the boy is spared!
“Here am I,” Abraham answers God. “Here am I,” – just as we heard Samuel Answer
when God called him.
Not, “Okay Lord, I’m ready!” Not, “Anything you want, Lord, just say the word!”
No, nothing as “ornate” as that. Nothing as wordy!
Just “Here am I, Lord!”
Here am I!
Again and again, throughout scripture, the Lord calls the names of his servants, and
the servants reply, “Here am I,” and the Lord speaks!
Later in this same Book of Genesis, the Angel of the Lord comes to Abraham’s
grandson, Jacob, in a dream, calls his name, and Jacob answers, “here am I!”
In the third chapter of Exodus, the Lord speaks to Moses out of the burning bush,
calling his name, and Moses answers, “Here am I!”
Three times in the Book of Isaiah, the Lord speaks the prophet’s name, and Isaiah
answers, “Here am I.”
Time and again, we hear it, and even into the New Testament, when the Lord calls on
Ananias in the Book of Acts, and the answer is, “Here I am, Lord!”
“Here I am,” Lord. “Here am I!”
Time and again, the Lord speaks, and his servants answer, “here I am, Lord! Here am
I, Lord.”
It’s no accident those words are used! No coincidence.
The term speaks to us; speaks to us of an attitude, an openness, a willingness.
“Here am I Lord” I’m ready to hear you, Lord.
“Here I am Lord,” I’m ready to speak with you, Lord; ready to serve you.
It’s a term that indicates a state of mind. It’s what I have always thought of as what I
call, “simple presence.”
It is being present to the Lord in the most simple way, the most open way.
It’s a presence that asks no questions, makes no demands.
It’s a state that seeks nothing; demands nothing; wants nothing.
It’s the very simplest way of being. It’s the very simplest kind of presence.
When two people are together, there is virtually always an agenda between them.
People always want something of one another. It may be something great or grand; or
it may be something quite small or very simple. I may want from you riches or power,
honor or service. Or I might want from you love and caring. Or I may want from you
the simple recognition that I am a human being with wants and needs – just like you!
Regardless of how great or small, when I’m with you and you’re with me, I almost
inevitably want something from you and you want something from me!
But our scriptures speak of a different way of “being with!” Indeed, the frequency of
use of the term actually bespeaks a Call; a call to us to come to God with a completely
different intent; a profoundly different purpose!
It is to come to God with a simple openness, asking nothing, anticipating nothing. It is
simply being! With God!
It is simply being with God; simply present with God. Nothing more.
Oh, certainly, when we come to God, you and I, it is usually with needs, with wants,
with desires! We come to God needing help, needing healing, needing mending. We
come to him with our desires, with our hopes and dreams and aspirations.
All of which is fine; all of which is as it should be – that we should come to our Father
with our hopes and needs and dreams. These things are all fine with God! And God’s
hope for us is the fulfillment of all those things.
But God wants more from us, as well – hopes for more from us.
God hopes for that time when – in addition to our hopes and needs we will be able to
come into God’s presence as Abraham did, and Jacob; as Moses did, and Isaiah; as
Ezra and Samuel and Ananias came to him.
Asking nothing, wanting nothing, needing nothing, demanding nothing. But open to
anything, open to everything.
Come to him simply to be! Simply to be in God’s presence; simply content to be with
God!
Simply being in the presence of God,
Simple presence.
Such a simple thing. Such a beautiful thing that God calls us to learn; to learn to
simply be with God. To simply let go of all the things that occupy us – and to be in the
presence of our God. Open, listening, and free. It can be learned. It can be done.
“And I’m reminded of another song – an even older one; an old Shaker song that says,
“'Tis a gift to be simple, 'tis a gift to be free,
'Tis a gift to come down where we ought to be,”
Where we ought to be – in God’s presence, saying to God only, “Here am I.” And
wouldn’t that be heaven?! In God’s own Name. Amen
from an old song – a “golden oldie”, in fact, from, of all people Sonny and Cher: “And
the beat goes on; and the beat goes on.”
‘Way back at the beginning of the year, we had an Old Testament Lesson from the 1st
Book of Samuel. It was the story in which the young boy who would grow up to be the
great prophet Samuel – the man responsible for the birth of the kingdom of Israel –
was called by the Lord God.
Some weeks later I mentioned that lesson when a similar story came up in the
lectionary – this one about the prophet Elijah – hiding in the mountains from his foes
until the Lord spoke to him and told him what to do.
Both cases, I said, illustrated a need we all have: to learn to listen. This, I said, is
basic to all spirituality – the need to learn simply to quiet the noise around us and in
us, so that we can be still, and listen to God speaking within us.
Our lessons seemed to be drawing us toward prayer, toward looking at the subject of
prayer, and to that particular need in prayer – that need to learn to listen! That need
to learn to be still, to still one’s tongue, to still one’s thoughts, and simply, to listen!
To listen for that still, small voice that speaks within each one of us, the voice of God
calling us into being, calling us to be.
And today, “the beat goes on,” as we return to the theme of learning to pray – but a
step further on!
There is a phrase in today’s reading from the book of Genesis that has long
interested me – no: fascinated me.
The story, itself is well known, and often preached. Abraham and his wife, Sarah, in
their old age, and after many, many promises from God, have finally been blessed
with a child of their own – a long awaited son! But now God has, unexpectedly and
inexplicably, required that son, back! He directs Abraham to take this beloved child
out into the wilderness, on the mountainside, and to make of him a human sacrifice!
As our lesson opens, God calls Abraham’s name, and Abraham answers, “Here am I.”
Told what the Lord requires, he does it, without question. And later, when all is ready,
and the knife is poised to strike, the Lord calls his name, once more, and Abraham
answers, again, “Here am I” – and the boy is spared!
“Here am I,” Abraham answers God. “Here am I,” – just as we heard Samuel Answer
when God called him.
Not, “Okay Lord, I’m ready!” Not, “Anything you want, Lord, just say the word!”
No, nothing as “ornate” as that. Nothing as wordy!
Just “Here am I, Lord!”
Here am I!
Again and again, throughout scripture, the Lord calls the names of his servants, and
the servants reply, “Here am I,” and the Lord speaks!
Later in this same Book of Genesis, the Angel of the Lord comes to Abraham’s
grandson, Jacob, in a dream, calls his name, and Jacob answers, “here am I!”
In the third chapter of Exodus, the Lord speaks to Moses out of the burning bush,
calling his name, and Moses answers, “Here am I!”
Three times in the Book of Isaiah, the Lord speaks the prophet’s name, and Isaiah
answers, “Here am I.”
Time and again, we hear it, and even into the New Testament, when the Lord calls on
Ananias in the Book of Acts, and the answer is, “Here I am, Lord!”
“Here I am,” Lord. “Here am I!”
Time and again, the Lord speaks, and his servants answer, “here I am, Lord! Here am
I, Lord.”
It’s no accident those words are used! No coincidence.
The term speaks to us; speaks to us of an attitude, an openness, a willingness.
“Here am I Lord” I’m ready to hear you, Lord.
“Here I am Lord,” I’m ready to speak with you, Lord; ready to serve you.
It’s a term that indicates a state of mind. It’s what I have always thought of as what I
call, “simple presence.”
It is being present to the Lord in the most simple way, the most open way.
It’s a presence that asks no questions, makes no demands.
It’s a state that seeks nothing; demands nothing; wants nothing.
It’s the very simplest way of being. It’s the very simplest kind of presence.
When two people are together, there is virtually always an agenda between them.
People always want something of one another. It may be something great or grand; or
it may be something quite small or very simple. I may want from you riches or power,
honor or service. Or I might want from you love and caring. Or I may want from you
the simple recognition that I am a human being with wants and needs – just like you!
Regardless of how great or small, when I’m with you and you’re with me, I almost
inevitably want something from you and you want something from me!
But our scriptures speak of a different way of “being with!” Indeed, the frequency of
use of the term actually bespeaks a Call; a call to us to come to God with a completely
different intent; a profoundly different purpose!
It is to come to God with a simple openness, asking nothing, anticipating nothing. It is
simply being! With God!
It is simply being with God; simply present with God. Nothing more.
Oh, certainly, when we come to God, you and I, it is usually with needs, with wants,
with desires! We come to God needing help, needing healing, needing mending. We
come to him with our desires, with our hopes and dreams and aspirations.
All of which is fine; all of which is as it should be – that we should come to our Father
with our hopes and needs and dreams. These things are all fine with God! And God’s
hope for us is the fulfillment of all those things.
But God wants more from us, as well – hopes for more from us.
God hopes for that time when – in addition to our hopes and needs we will be able to
come into God’s presence as Abraham did, and Jacob; as Moses did, and Isaiah; as
Ezra and Samuel and Ananias came to him.
Asking nothing, wanting nothing, needing nothing, demanding nothing. But open to
anything, open to everything.
Come to him simply to be! Simply to be in God’s presence; simply content to be with
God!
Simply being in the presence of God,
Simple presence.
Such a simple thing. Such a beautiful thing that God calls us to learn; to learn to
simply be with God. To simply let go of all the things that occupy us – and to be in the
presence of our God. Open, listening, and free. It can be learned. It can be done.
“And I’m reminded of another song – an even older one; an old Shaker song that says,
“'Tis a gift to be simple, 'tis a gift to be free,
'Tis a gift to come down where we ought to be,”
Where we ought to be – in God’s presence, saying to God only, “Here am I.” And
wouldn’t that be heaven?! In God’s own Name. Amen
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| Calvary Episcopal Church, Rockdale |
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