"'All Be Safely Gathered In': Gathering of Talent"

Text: 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13
Theme: “’All be Safe Gathered In’: Gathering of Talent”
The Thirty Third Sunday In Ordinary Time
The Twenty Fifth Sunday After Pentecost
November 14, 2010
First Presbyterian Church
Denton, Texas
The Rev. Paul R. Dunklau

+In the Name of Jesus+

Anatole France, a winner of the Nobel Prize for literature, once told the story of a young monk who wanted to express his gratitude and devotion to God. In his first week at the monastery, he observed the talents and skills of the other monks. Some of them sang; others played musical instruments; still others were theological thinkers, gifted speakers, and able writers. But all that this young monk had learned to do really well in his past life was to perform juggling acts at carnivals. One night he went into the sanctuary while hoping that none of the other monks would see him and make fun of him. He brought a sackful of mallets and balls and there, in the chancel of the sanctuary, he performed his juggling act before God. Juggling was his talent; juggling is what he did well. It is my considered view that heaven smiled!

It has been said that “What you spend the most time doing is what you get good at.” I think there’s more than a pinch of truth in this. To those of you familiar with the history and game of golf, the name Bobby Jones might ring a bell. Someone from a golf gallery once watched Jones play a round of golf and remarked that Mr. Jones was very lucky. Jones, with his usual wit and intelligence replied, “You know, the harder I practice the luckier I get.”

I have a good friend by the name of Shannon Drawe. When I asked him to take some pictures of my ordination, he did so. His work was terrific. He did more than mosey around and fire off snapshots willy-nilly with one of those disposable cameras. What he did was capture moments. That ability, I’m sure, was developed – and continues to be developed – because he works at his craft and enjoys his craft.

Back in the late 1980s, I was sitting unpacking books during my first week on the job as a Lutheran pastor in Indiana. It’s lunch time, and there’s a knock on the door. In walks a man who looked vaguely familiar. I remembered seeing him in church. “My name’s Wayne,” he said. “You got a minute?” I said, “You bet.” He said, “I’m in church most Sundays, but I don’t go to Sunday school. I don’t teach; I don’t join committees; other than worship, I’m not that active. On Saturday I go boating with family and friends. Monday through Friday I work as a financial officer for a small company. I’m a trained accountant; that’s my thing, and I’m pretty good at it” After only a few comments, I was impressed with this guy. He then hands me a sheaf of papers which comprised the congregation’s financial statement for the month. They were crisp, clear, easy to read, and user-friendly. He goes on to say that he had been the church treasurer for the last few years and he would be glad to continue. “I’m happy to do it; that’s my thing; I’ve found my niche,” he said.

I’d offer a number of comments about Wayne. First, he was aware of his talent and he worked at it. Second, he didn’t bite off more than he could chew, and I’m sure that saved him a lot of headaches at work, at church, and in the world. He had determined what he would do and what he would not do, and he was comfortable with both determinations. Third, he was willing – and happy! -- to use his specific skills and abilities to serve the church.

This is the point where someone will surely mutter under their breath and say: “Oh that sounds all very nice, but I’m not Wayne. I’m just an ordinary, average guy (or I’m just an ordinary, average gal), and I’m not really sure I have have all that much to offer.” This is the point where I say – quoting Seth Myers and Amy Poehler on Saturday Night Live: “Oh really?!”

Listen to the words of the apostle Paul in his first letter to his Corinthians friends. It’s right here in the Bible – 1 Corinthians, chapter 12, verses 4-7:

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit, and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

That essentially says, my dear family members in Christ, that each one of you has a gift. There is no discrimination here. God does not play favorites with His children. There is unity in that we each have a gift. There is diversity in that the gifts themselves different. Call it a gift, a talent, a skill, and ability or what have you. Each one them is ours for the common good.

Years ago, I had the privilege of meeting a retired couple. I speak of Harold and Anna Johannsen. Harold was once a farmer and very nifty at word-working. His wife was a cook – and she was just as nifty at cooking as Harold was at wood-working. Now, east of the Mississippi, I think they call them pitch-ins. West of the Mississippi they’re called potlucks. Today, we might call them “fixins” to go with chili! Whatever the case, Anna Johannsen’s pies were all the rage at just about every church pitch-in or potluck one could attend. But there came a time when she no longer cooked, and Harold then took over in the kitchen. There came a time when Harold could no longer take care of her. There came a time when Anna went to a nursing home which had an entire wing for residents, like Anna, who had Alzheimer’s disease.

On the one hand, one could say that Anna Johannsen no longer used her talent for food preparation, in general, and baking delicious and mouth-watering pies, in particular. The ravages of disease put an end to that. People talked about remembering Anna and how she once was and how wonderful her pies tasted.

But, on the other hand, while even a resident at the nursing home with a wing set aside for those with Alzheimers, Anna had a talent. Without even knowing it, she had a gift for the common good. It came in the form of a whole range of opportunities – an opportunity to visit a woman who was sick, an opportunity to stand with and support her husband, an opportunity to be with a sister and brother in Christ in their time of need, an opportunity – quite honestly – to see Jesus. Jesus says: “I was sick, and you visited me.”

Today is the second-last Sunday in the church year. Next Sunday, November 21st, is Christ the King Sunday, the last Sunday in the church year. On these Sundays, the appointed Scripture readings point us to the future. During these days, the holy catholic church – and First Presbyterian Church right along with it – does some meditating and thinking and praying about the return of Jesus Christ in glory. We also meditate and think and pray about how we can be the best caretakers, or stewards, of the time, talent, and treasure our Lord has gven us.

When Jesus was first among us over two thousand years ago, He came as a helpless baby lying in a manger. That’s the Christmas story, as you know. Even as an infant, his family – Mary and Joseph – were forced to escape because people wanted Him dead. But when He comes again a second time, it will not be as a helpless baby on the run with His parents. Rather, He will come – at a time that we don’t know -- as the risen and victorious King of kings and Lord of lords. He will come – as the Scriptures teach and as the Apostles’ Creed confesses – to be the judge of the living and the dead.

The New Testament reading appointed for today, that I read before the message began, was from a letter that Paul the apostle wrote to the Thessalonians. It is one of the earliest New Testament documents we have. Some scholars date it as early as 51 A.D. Many of those early Christians who first heard or read Paul’s letter thought that the second coming of Christ would come at any minute. As a result, some of them apparently thought it wise to just sit around and wait it out. Why bother working or, for that matter, using any of your skills and abilities at all? Just kick back and chill out! Christ has got you covered; He’s got your back, and he WILL be back before you know it.

Word got back to the apostle Paul about this, and he writes: “We hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work.” Now the word “busybody” is pretty much out of circulation. We can be forgiven for thinking that a busybody is someone who is constantly at work. Actually, the meaning is the opposite. Paul understood the busybody at the time to be someone who basically worked hard at doing nothing – zip, zero, nada. They had gifts for the common good, but they weren’t using them. It would be true to the Biblical text to paraphrase what Paul said like this: “I understand that some of you are loafing around; some of you are just chilling out; some of you are not doing diddly squat.

To the busybody crowd, to the group sitting around twiddling its collective thumb, to the society of loafers, the apostle spoke directly. He commands and encourages three things. First, he says to work quietly. Second, he encourages them to earn their own living. Third, and perhaps most importantly, he says to not grow weary in doing what is right.

As Christians, our faith is an earthy, action-oriented faith. As with pretty much everything that is said and done in the world, the question is one of motive. What’s the motive for using our God-given gifts? Is it to put our name in lights? Is it to enhance our resume? Is it to bolster our image? If any of this is true, we may want to revisit our motives. What motivates us to use our time, talents, and treasures for the glory of God?

What freedom and joy there is when the motive is to glorify God and to love God’s people! A noted Roman Catholic writer, George Weigel, once commented that the church had a great deal more to say to people than simply “pray, pay, and obey.” Our faith is animate everything we do – including employing our talents. It is easy to fall into the trap of saying, “Oh, let someone else do it.” What happens then is that we eventually complain that “someone else” is not doing a better job of the job we’re not doing at all.” That type of thinking is counter-productive and basically boring.

Far more productive and exciting as all get-out is what I see more and more at First Presbyterian: individual members of the body of Christ practicing, employing, bringing, and dedicating their God-given talents and abilities to the glory of God and the love of God’s children. Things are starting to click in this regard. Time is gathered in; talents are gathered in! It is my considered view that heaven smiles! Amen.