Last Sermon, Hope UMC
Things I’ve Learned At Hope; Things I’ve Learned About Hope
June 17, 2007
It took me four years to get through seminary. I’ve been here at Hope four years, and I’ve learned more here than I learned in my time in school.
For instance, I know:
that the live load capacity of the flat part of the Hope roof was designed for 50 pounds/square/foot, with a dead weight allowance of 10 psf.
which tiles in the building have non-friable asbestos in them, and what non-friable means.
how long it takes the fire department to get here when we set off the fire alarm.
that I can get here from the parsonage in 3 minutes, depending on the light at Woodland.
how to rescue babies who are stuck in the elevator.
how to reset the organ when it quits four minutes before a funeral.
how to get into the Women’s closet downstairs.
I know who made the cross downstairs, where it came from and who put it on the wall.
what the neighborhood looks like from the top of the roof and how this cross and crown is attached.
what is in that room up there (above the narthex) and how to get there.
which parts of the building the Fire Marshall will allow the nursery school children to be in and how the nursery school gets all the babies out in case of a fire.
when the water will start running into the nursery school in spring and how to vacuum it up.
what time of the day and year the sun comes directly through this rainbow window, and I know who made this window.
I know how to run a charge conference, how a church can sell property, and what they can do with the money from property and what they can’t do.
I know which hospital most of you go to.
and I know the names of the local funeral directors and caretakers at the local cemeteries and where they go to church.
I’ve learned a lot at CHUM too:
how to run a board meeting and what the responsibilities of board members are.
I know what you can do with rhubarb.
I know how to design worship for Jews, Christians, Muslims, Quakers, Lutherans, and the rest of us, and how to plan an event for liberal and conservative Christians together.
I have an idea how to get an event to happen on the Capitol steps.
I know that 7% of the Duluth population are ethnic minorities, but 50% of CHUM’s clients are.
I know what the CDGB, LISC, SMDC, APEX, JRLC, RUAH, BHC, and TRA are and how they are related to CHUM.
I’ve learned about Duluth as well:
I have learned that Polartec can be worn anywhere in Duluth at any time for any occasion, and that you never pack away all your winter clothes. I don’t know a bride who wore Polartec at her wedding but I do know someone who wore a wintergreen jacket at hers.
I’ve learned you do need a 4 wheel drive for the hills in the winter.
I know all the sounds the bridge makes when it goes up and down, and what being “bridged” means.
I know what time the elite runners will arrive at Mile 15 waterstation at Grandma’s Marathon.
I’ve met half the City Councilors, worked with the City Commissioner who isn’t in trouble, and I’ve been hugged by the mayor.
When I was 15 and first thinking about ministry I had no idea I would be learning things like this. But then, I didn’t read the Bible that carefully, then, or maybe it wouldn’t have surprised me: our scripture for today (2 Chronicles 3) includes great details about Solomon’s temple. We have descriptions of the size and make of Noah’s ark, and the details on the ark of covenant. It tells us what fabrics to wear and when and how much we should give to the poor.
These details are important. They make up the fabric of our lives, they support what we do.
That is what I have learned at Hope.
But I have also learned some things about hope in these 4 years:
I have learned that when you take a roof that has a live load capacity of 50 psf and a dead weight limit of 10 psf but the insulation is wet, adding 5 psf, and when the previous roof was installed the former roof wasn’t removed so the dead weight the roof is carrying is actually 24 psf, and it is March and you have 40 psf of wet snow on the roof, you have a problem –
and when you have just cut the budget by 20%, and taken out a $100,000 mortgage for the new elevator, and the roofer tells you it will cost $200,000 to fix the wet, rotting and overloaded roof, and the Fire Marshall tells you to put in an addressable alarm system or else and that system costs $26,000 –
I know that if the people have hope, they will find a way through it, and when they are finding that way through and things are going fine sometimes a check will fall out of an envelope from someone who hasn’t been here in 40 years that will make it all that much easier.
And I have learned that if you take two churches and put them together with their 4 altars and 5 crosses and 6 pianos and 20 file cabinets and 300 opinions
if the people have hope, they can make one church.
I have learned that if you take 7 people who don’t know each other very well and ask them to pray and support one another in their spiritual lives,
if they have hope, they will grow in faith and love one another.
I have learned that if you take a small music program with only one man in it, two women singing tenor, one alto who hits the sopranos (God rest her soul) and a very new choir director,
if the people have hope, the music will sing.
I have learned that if you take a small, out of the way congregation that isn’t very well known in the community
if the people have hope, they will invite someone to teach them how to welcome visitors so they are ready when people come in the door, and then they will buy advertising, and they will keep reaching out into the community to share who they are.
I have learned that if a pastor who is 8 months pregnant who doesn’t know how to do hardly anything practical shows up at the church
if she and the people have hope, they will love each other and together they will set the church on fire, and I don’t mean anything that the addressable alarm system will pick up. I mean on fire with God’s love.
And if she and the people have hope, even when their time together has ended they will still love one another, they will still set the church on fire.
The details matter. The numbers matter. The building matters. The bricks and mortar and the budget matter. They are the structure, the stones that support and surround us.
But if the people of God have hope
they shall be like living stones, living with the love of God in them,
living with the presence of Christ in them, living with the possibility of the Spirit in them
and God will build out of them a living church,
a church called Hope.
Amen.
June 17, 2007
It took me four years to get through seminary. I’ve been here at Hope four years, and I’ve learned more here than I learned in my time in school.
For instance, I know:
that the live load capacity of the flat part of the Hope roof was designed for 50 pounds/square/foot, with a dead weight allowance of 10 psf.
which tiles in the building have non-friable asbestos in them, and what non-friable means.
how long it takes the fire department to get here when we set off the fire alarm.
that I can get here from the parsonage in 3 minutes, depending on the light at Woodland.
how to rescue babies who are stuck in the elevator.
how to reset the organ when it quits four minutes before a funeral.
how to get into the Women’s closet downstairs.
I know who made the cross downstairs, where it came from and who put it on the wall.
what the neighborhood looks like from the top of the roof and how this cross and crown is attached.
what is in that room up there (above the narthex) and how to get there.
which parts of the building the Fire Marshall will allow the nursery school children to be in and how the nursery school gets all the babies out in case of a fire.
when the water will start running into the nursery school in spring and how to vacuum it up.
what time of the day and year the sun comes directly through this rainbow window, and I know who made this window.
I know how to run a charge conference, how a church can sell property, and what they can do with the money from property and what they can’t do.
I know which hospital most of you go to.
and I know the names of the local funeral directors and caretakers at the local cemeteries and where they go to church.
I’ve learned a lot at CHUM too:
how to run a board meeting and what the responsibilities of board members are.
I know what you can do with rhubarb.
I know how to design worship for Jews, Christians, Muslims, Quakers, Lutherans, and the rest of us, and how to plan an event for liberal and conservative Christians together.
I have an idea how to get an event to happen on the Capitol steps.
I know that 7% of the Duluth population are ethnic minorities, but 50% of CHUM’s clients are.
I know what the CDGB, LISC, SMDC, APEX, JRLC, RUAH, BHC, and TRA are and how they are related to CHUM.
I’ve learned about Duluth as well:
I have learned that Polartec can be worn anywhere in Duluth at any time for any occasion, and that you never pack away all your winter clothes. I don’t know a bride who wore Polartec at her wedding but I do know someone who wore a wintergreen jacket at hers.
I’ve learned you do need a 4 wheel drive for the hills in the winter.
I know all the sounds the bridge makes when it goes up and down, and what being “bridged” means.
I know what time the elite runners will arrive at Mile 15 waterstation at Grandma’s Marathon.
I’ve met half the City Councilors, worked with the City Commissioner who isn’t in trouble, and I’ve been hugged by the mayor.
When I was 15 and first thinking about ministry I had no idea I would be learning things like this. But then, I didn’t read the Bible that carefully, then, or maybe it wouldn’t have surprised me: our scripture for today (2 Chronicles 3) includes great details about Solomon’s temple. We have descriptions of the size and make of Noah’s ark, and the details on the ark of covenant. It tells us what fabrics to wear and when and how much we should give to the poor.
These details are important. They make up the fabric of our lives, they support what we do.
That is what I have learned at Hope.
But I have also learned some things about hope in these 4 years:
I have learned that when you take a roof that has a live load capacity of 50 psf and a dead weight limit of 10 psf but the insulation is wet, adding 5 psf, and when the previous roof was installed the former roof wasn’t removed so the dead weight the roof is carrying is actually 24 psf, and it is March and you have 40 psf of wet snow on the roof, you have a problem –
and when you have just cut the budget by 20%, and taken out a $100,000 mortgage for the new elevator, and the roofer tells you it will cost $200,000 to fix the wet, rotting and overloaded roof, and the Fire Marshall tells you to put in an addressable alarm system or else and that system costs $26,000 –
I know that if the people have hope, they will find a way through it, and when they are finding that way through and things are going fine sometimes a check will fall out of an envelope from someone who hasn’t been here in 40 years that will make it all that much easier.
And I have learned that if you take two churches and put them together with their 4 altars and 5 crosses and 6 pianos and 20 file cabinets and 300 opinions
if the people have hope, they can make one church.
I have learned that if you take 7 people who don’t know each other very well and ask them to pray and support one another in their spiritual lives,
if they have hope, they will grow in faith and love one another.
I have learned that if you take a small music program with only one man in it, two women singing tenor, one alto who hits the sopranos (God rest her soul) and a very new choir director,
if the people have hope, the music will sing.
I have learned that if you take a small, out of the way congregation that isn’t very well known in the community
if the people have hope, they will invite someone to teach them how to welcome visitors so they are ready when people come in the door, and then they will buy advertising, and they will keep reaching out into the community to share who they are.
I have learned that if a pastor who is 8 months pregnant who doesn’t know how to do hardly anything practical shows up at the church
if she and the people have hope, they will love each other and together they will set the church on fire, and I don’t mean anything that the addressable alarm system will pick up. I mean on fire with God’s love.
And if she and the people have hope, even when their time together has ended they will still love one another, they will still set the church on fire.
The details matter. The numbers matter. The building matters. The bricks and mortar and the budget matter. They are the structure, the stones that support and surround us.
But if the people of God have hope
they shall be like living stones, living with the love of God in them,
living with the presence of Christ in them, living with the possibility of the Spirit in them
and God will build out of them a living church,
a church called Hope.
Amen.
posted by Michelle at 6:29 AM
1 Comments:
Michelle,
Wow! I can only imagine what it was like to preach this sermon. Thank you for steering me towards it. You said it contained history but I think you left out a word that is crucial that you in particular have helped these folks and this church to realize. This is "faith history," and just like the waters parting or the manna appearing the check coming just in time, the people coming together just in time, you being here it seems at the right time is God's presence.
You have make the beginings of my minsitry full of exciting challenges that I hope to live up to.
And by the way. I am so happy you seem to have found a neighborhood. We have never experienced that and are not now. But the house is great.
Keep the Faith,
Dan S-B
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