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The Value of
Monuments and Markers
Joshua 3:14 - 4:7,19-24
The big stir around Winchester
Friends this week (11-16 October 2010) was the delivery and
installation of the new Indiana Historical Bureau marker plaque
calling attention to the influence of Friends on the settlement and
development of Randolph County. Early in the week, INDOT and city
Street Department workers showed up in their security green vests
and hardhats to measure concrete and paint dots on the sidewalk
along Washington Street. They initially marked the wrong spot --
Pam had to haul out her emails from the INDOT bigwigs to convince
them the correct spot was beneath the rose window of the sanctuary.
So, they remeasured and redotted, then a few days later returned
with a jackhammer to open a hole in the sidewalk and set the
signpost deep in new cement. On Friday, they brought the heavy
bronze marker and bolted it to the post, then immediately covered it
with cardboard to await Sunday's unveiling. It was the culmination
of nearly three years of effort on Pam's part to research Friends'
history in Indiana, write it all up, find the proper people to whom
to submit it, raise the $2000 fee to pay for it, and get the
Historical Bureau and highway authorities to agree on where and how
it could be placed. My question all along the way has been "is this
really worth all this time and effort?" Won't it be just one more
sign people drive by and never read?
Despite my skepticism, I must
admit that if kept in proper perspective and utilized appropriately,
monuments and markers can be valuable tools for education and
vision. One reason I recognize that fact comes from one of the
great stories of the Old Testament, the crossing of the Israelites
into Canaan at the end of their long journey out of enslavement in
Egypt. Joshua was told by God to send the priests carrying the Ark
of the Covenant into the Jordan River at spring flood stage. The
moment their feet touched the water, the river stood up like a
stationary wall to open a dry riverbed downstream. The priests
stopped in the middle of the river and stayed there with the Ark
while the Israelites, an estimated 2-4 million of them, crossed on
dry ground over into the Promised Land. God then told Joshua to
have one representative from each of the twelve tribes go back into
the riverbed and carry a large stone over to the west bank. After
they had done so, the priests carried the Ark up out of the
riverbed, the wall of water collapsed, and the Jordan resumed
rushing down towards the Dead Sea.
Joshua instructed the twelve
stone-bearers to haul their stones to that night's campsite at
Gilgal, where he set them up in some sort of altar or monument to
the miraculous events of that day. He then told the people that
"in the future, when your descendants ask their fathers 'What do
these stones mean?', they will tell them 'the LORD your God dried up
the Jordan before you, and Israel crossed the Jordan on dry
ground.... so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the
hand of the LORD is powerful, and so that you might always fear the
LORD your God" (Joshua 4:21-24).
Joshua's explanation of that
monument's meaning is pretty clear. In thinking about that pile of
stones, and about the new hunk of bronze standing outside the north
wall of the sanctuary, I'd like to suggest that we also need to be
clear about what those markers didn't/don't mean. I'll offer four
observations:
The Monuments Do Not
Imply Israel's or Quakers' Perfection
The Israelites' crossing into Canaan occurred 40 years
later than God had planned, all because the escapees led out of
Egypt by Moses had reached the boundary of the Promised Land only to
buckle in fear and refuse to go in. Never mind that God had
miraculously delivered them at the Red Sea, fed them manna and quail
when no food could be found, provided clean water in a desert where
there was none, and let them witness numerous other miracles during
their trek north. At the crucial moment, the Israelites feared the
large, well-armed Canaanites more than they trusted God. And that
wasn't their first display of fickleness. The whole journey from
Egypt had been marked by lapses and failures. When Moses was absent
longer than they expected, they crafted and worshiped a golden
calf. They constantly criticized Moses' and Aaron's leadership,
griped about the food and water, and mounted coup-like challenges to
their authority. They ignored God's instruction and entered into
disobedient national and personal relationships with people along
the way that entangled them and inhibited future obedience to God.
And despite all that, God remained faithful to them and brought them
to the edge of Canaan, where they caved in fear and turned back to
the wilderness. Only two adults from that entire crowd remained to
receive the Promised Land when Joshua brought the Israelites to the
banks of the Jordan 40 years later -- Joshua and his fellow scout
Caleb.
A review of the earliest minutes
of Winchester Quarterly Meeting and Winchester Preparative/Monthly
Meeting similarly dispels any notion of perfection regarding this
county's earliest Friends. People were dismissed from membership
for sinful, inappropriate relationships, for indulgence in addictive
substances, for lackadaisical commitment to Meeting ministries, for
failure to resolve conflicts over what were insubstantial, petty
issues, and for many other "behaviors unbecoming" to the witness of
Friends. There were constant struggles to find enough willing
workers and financial resources for the church's ministries. As
with the Israelites' stone monument, the marker on the sidewalk
outside does not imply human perfection, but rather stands as a
witness of God's faithfulness, mercy, and forgiveness of clearly
flawed people.
The Monuments Are Not
Trophies for Contests Won
The Israelites' monument at Gilgal did not imply that they
were somehow better than the other groups in the region. They did
not walk over into Canaan, take the measure of the Canaanite
nations, see what they did to be successful, and then set out to do
those same things, only a little better than the Amorites,
Gibeonites, Philistines, Amalekites, or Anakites did them. When
they were at their best, the Israelites looked to God, not their
neighbors, for guidance about how life should be lived and what they
should do, and they obeyed that guidance in ways that made them
distinct and very different from the norm. At their best, the
Israelites refused to worship or be controlled by idols and manmade
things. Even though it is sometimes hard to imagine when reading
the Old Testament, at their best they lived with a much greater
appreciation for the sacredness of life and a much stronger
discipline over human appetites than did the people around them.
In the same way, Friends of the
19th century in Randolph County are not remembered for doing the
same things others were doing, only a little better. Rather, they
are remembered for doing many things that their neighbors and other
Christians were not doing because of the sacrificial cost and
unpopularity of that kind of service for the Lord. In his message
to Quarterly Meeting tonight, Greg Hinshaw will tell about Friends
in Winchester whose deep concern for lives being destroyed by
addiction led them to strong, sometimes unpopular leadership in
temperance ministry here. Their concern for the equality of human
persons drew them into participation and support for the Underground
Railroad to help escaped slaves reach freedom, and to help establish
black settlements in the county and education facilities like the
Union Literacy Institute near Spartanburg. That same concern meant
Friends recognized women's equality and importance in ministry and
leadership long before others did. Friends' conviction that Jesus
calls His disciples to nonviolence meant that most could not join
the military during the Civil War, but neither could they support
the South because of their abhorrence of slavery and their desire to
see the Union preserved. (That ambiguity led to the war memorial on
Winchester's city square, initiated and partly funded by Friend
James Moorman in recognition of the sacrifice made by Randolph
County citizens who did join the army to save the Union.) The
Quakers' recognition of that of God in all people, especially those
who suffer, drew them to begin and sustain sacrificial endeavors
like the Moorman Orphans Home west of town, and the relief effort to
save freed slaves in Louisiana that eventually led to the founding
of Southland College in Arkansas with the strong participation of
Randolph County Friends, including our first pastors Elkanah and
Irena Beard. Their concern for Bible education, holy living, and
Christian service led them to be pioneers in the Christian Endeavor
movement in this county, evidenced by the CE panels in the stained
glass windows on the east side of the sanctuary. We do not
memorialize those early Friends because they did what everyone else
was doing, only a little better. We recognize them because they had
the courage, out of love for God, to do what others were unwilling
to do.
The Monuments and Markers
are Not to Recall Human Success, but God's Presence and Power
Joshua made it clear to the Israelites that the stones at
Gilgal should be explained to future generations as a reminder of
God's faithfulness to His promise to be with them wherever they went
(Joshua 1:9), and a reminder of God's miraculous power in order to
sustain their reverence for Him (4:24). They were always to
remember that it was God who was great; the Israelites were merely a
wandering band of participant-witnesses, privileged to be led and
empowered by the Lord.
That is the same message conveyed
by the historical marker out on the sidewalk. We sang this morning
"to God be the glory, great things He has done." The
marker does not imply greatness on the part of Friends or their
projects, but rather proclaims the greatness and faithfulness of
their Lord. It acknowledges that when Friends have been faithful to
acknowledge and welcome God's abiding presence in listening worship,
and as they have acted upon what they heard there, they too have
been privileged participant-witnesses in great things God has done
in Randolph County for more than a century and a half.
The Monuments and Markers
are Not "Mission Accomplished" Banners
When Joshua stacked up those twelve rocks at Gilgal, Israel
had indeed trekked quite a distance from where they started, but the
journey to which God had called them was nowhere near completion.
They had only just begun the daunting challenge of resettling
Canaan, finding land and constructing homes for all the Israelite
families, and establishing means of governance and economic exchange
in what was still hostile territory. Those twelve stones were set
up to remind the settlers and future generations of Israelites of
God's past deliverance, leading and help, and to challenge them to
embrace God's call into an unknown future by faithful, trusting
obedience in carrying out God's purposes. The stones were there to
remind present and future Israelites to humbly acknowledge their
imperfection and regularly to seek God's forgiveness and renewal;
they were there to challenge the Israelites not to fear being led by
God to be different from those around them, and to remain constantly
aware of God's promised presence and empowerment.
The historical marker on
Washington Street likewise should remind present and future Friends
of the passionate, sacrificial service for Christ, His Kingdom, and
His truth shown by the Quakers who settled this county, built this
gathering place, and established this fellowship so long ago -- and
it should challenge us to remember the Lord's clear call for each of
us to continue that unique, powerful witness and way of living into
our own unknown futures. One of the questions most important for us
to consider as we unveil the historical marker dedicated to Randolph
County's earliest Friends is, "What are we, collectively and
individually, doing for God that will be worth putting on a marker
in 2110? What will people 100 years from now be glad to remember
about us?"
It is almost certain that what
they'll find memorable won't be the fancy meetinghouses we build.
The men who repaired the brickwork on our building last summer told
us that no one builds them like this anymore, and that the ones
going up these days likely won't even last 100 years. It's doubtful
that we'll be remembered by our computers, digital projectors, and
hi-tech sound systems in worship -- everyone else is doing that too,
and 100 years from now they'll be using completely different tools
anyway. And as Gulley and Mulholland point out in If God Is
Love, we won't be memorialized for installing Starbucks kiosks
and gift shops in our church foyers to entice folks in, either.
What will be remembered
gladly will be Friends who lived with increasing spiritual depth,
consistency, and integrity, not by fickle convenience or for
self-gain. What will be worth remembering in 2110 will be enduring
faith communities of Friends deeply committed to shared ministry
with one another, not the church shopping and hopping to find the
best deal that sometimes seems the norm these days. A hundred years
from now, they will want to remember Friends who lived truth into
action, who obediently implemented what they discerned in worship in
ways that opposed sin, diminished its damage, and replaced it with
real justice. They will celebrate 21st century Friends whose
lifestyles exhibit the sacrificial love, costly sharing, and
disciplined service that convinces the world that the resurrected
Christ is indeed still alive and living in His contemporary
disciples -- the ones who regularly demonstrate the truth of Paul's
assertion that "no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has
conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him." (I
Corinthians 2:9) My prayer is that we will be those memorable
Friends.
--Ron Ferguson
17 October 2010
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Beatitudes of Motherhood
Sermon on Mother's Day
May 9, 2010
Nowhere in scripture is there an
instruction annually to ply the mothers and other nurturing women in
our lives with flowers, jewelry, chocolates, lingerie, kitchen
utensils, and Hallmark cards in order to express our
appreciation for their lives and help. The fifth of the Ten
Commandments (Exodus 20:12) instructs the Hebrews to honor their
mothers and fathers and links that to their well-being and success
in the Promised Land to which they were trekking. Paul echoes that
commandment in his instructions to Christian families at Ephesus,
partially defining "honoring" parents as "obeying them in the Lord"
(Ephesians 6:1,2). In general, a biblical case also can be made for
the responsibility of children to care for, respect, and express
gratitude to their parents.
Another way to honor mothers on
Mother's Day might be to bless them, not just in the sense of giving
them a reason to be proud of you, but in the way Jesus pronounced
blessing upon His disciples as He called them to lives of ministry
and outlined what that would mean (Matthew 5:3-12). It was both a
recognition of their commitment to seek to live His life, and a
challenge to them to consider how His life would transform them. If
Jesus was to pronounce such a blessing upon the ministry of
motherhood, it might go something like this.
Blessed are the mothers
who recognize the immensity and complexity of their task, who
realize it cannot be done without God's wisdom and help, and who cry
out for the empowering and guidance of the God who gave them the
children in the first place. It is what the parents of the Old
Testament judge Samson did after they unexpectedly learned they
would have a child (Judges 13:8). Mothers who humbly admit their
need for God can expect all of the Lord's resources and help to be
made accessible to them.
Blessed are the mothers
whose hearts are broken by the damage done by sin and selfishness to
their child, their family, and to their own parental abilities.
Such mothers will be grieved to the point of impassioned
intercession, asking God to intervene in children's lives to restore
them to the truth, and asking God to show her how to cooperate
helpfully in that process. Such mothers will stand in sharp
contrast to Jacob's mother Rebekah (Genesis 27), who aided and
abetted her son's greedy dishonesty, and such mothers will be
comforted by the realization that God desires to forgive and restore
even more than we desire to seek those gifts. They will be
comforted as well by being taught by the Lord how to express
unconditional love to children or others without condoning their
selfish sinfulness.
Blessed are the mothers
who, like the mother of Moses (Exodus 2), acknowledge God's
ownership of their children, who trust God's care and longterm best
intentions for them, and thus are willing to "let go" of them for a
time while those best intentions take shape in seemingly precarious,
uncertain circumstances. Had Moses' mother demanded the right to
defend her helpless little boy after Pharaoh's extermination order,
it most likely would have hastened Moses' death. By doing what they
can, but ultimately "floating" their children into God's care, they
can in God's time expect a better outcome than they could have
imagined, with the added blessing and joy of getting to participate
in God's work in their child and in God's bigger "project" as well.
Blessed are the mothers
whose strongest, most passionate desire is not for an easy life,
acclaim, or wealth for themselves or their children, but for God's
intentions to be fulfilled in the lives of those under their care.
Like Hannah, the eventual mother of Samuel (I Samuel 1:12-16), such
passion may be misunderstood or belittled by people, but it is
understood by God. Jesus praised the faith of a Canaanite woman
(Matthew 15) whose passion for obtaining healing for her daughter
caused her to violate cultural mores and risk mistreatment in order
to bring the child to Jesus' attention. He met the girl's need,
clearly demonstrating that God loves to satisfy such hunger for the
rightness of His Kingdom.
Blessed are the mothers
who figure out how to grow in their parenting skills beyond mere
rules and punishments and second chances, to instead engage and
accompany their kids in a living relationship of love for God and
truth that helps them want to please and obey Him and makes them
genuinely desire never to disappoint the Lord. Like the parents of
the prodigal son (Luke 15), the merciful involvement they invested
in their son will find a way to return to them.
Blessed are the mothers
who, despite the many attractions and distractions of the world --
the "lesser pearls" of wealth, notoriety, pleasure, ease -- never
lose their focus on the one Pearl of Great Price (Matthew 13:45,46)
which is "the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus" (Philippians
3:8). In their living and in their parenting, they will never
compromise away the eternal values of Christ's way of life for even
an abundance of worldly, temporal ones, and because of that, they
will get to see God at work, alive and active and producing evidence
of the Spirit's presence in their homes and in their children.
Blessed are the mothers
who navigate the competing and conflicting interests of raising
children in this secular world, not by taking sides with one child
against another, nor by taking sides with one theory or philosophy
of child-rearing against another, but by consistently choosing
obedience to God as the path they will follow. Their faithful
pursuit of truth as their guide will be attractive to their children
and others who are tired of the world's conflicts and competition,
and their deep, inner personal peace will calm their home and
welcome others into God's way.
Blessed are the mothers
who are called old-fashioned or out of touch when they treat
parenthood as a divine calling and sacred responsibility, and when
they are criticized or ridiculed for resisting and rejecting the
worldly pressures that would diminish her and her family's
commitment to Christ. They will find comfort in knowing that the
faithfulness of others who were great in God's Kingdom was similarly
belittled, and they will find that the love of God that fills their
souls makes any such criticism pale in comparison. As they persist
in serving the Lord, they discover that the spiritual Kingdom
they're inhabiting and inheriting is the one in which Jesus is
"making all things new" (Revelation 21:5), the way of life that is
most relevant and lifegiving, and that the way of the secular world
is the one that is steadily passing away.
The beatitudes of Jesus' Sermon
on the Mount form a template that fits perfectly, not just on the
ministry of motherhood, but on every unique life of discipleship to
which His individual followers are called. As we celebrate the
ministry of mothers, we all should be challenged to reengage the
disciplined life of Christ's Kingdom described by these simple
principles -- poverty of spirit, mourning of sin's impact, meekness,
hunger and thirst for righteousness, mercy, purity of heart,
peacemaking, and joyful absorption of persecution. If we'd do so,
we would find that it will bring blessing and transformation to our
souls, our homes, and our communities.
Ron Ferguson
Winchester Friends Church
9 May 2010
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