Wellspring UMC; Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost; August 12, 2007:

-II Corinthians 4: 1-6; Luke 11: 33-36

“Preaching Jesus Christ, the Light of the World”

Stories are important, because they open doors for our hearts and mind to go places we might never think of going. Through stories we gain insight into who we are, how the world works, and how we might live life more fully. A good story draws us in, and as the tapestry of images and thoughts are woven together, we are woven into that which is created. Stories are important.

This Bible that we read from, the Word of God, is filled with stories. Stories of faith, tragedy, hope, despair, destruction, creation, redemption, justice, and resurrection. Through this story book we have revealed to us some of the most vital and powerful lessons of life, and by the Word, we are transformed into who God needs us to be, light to the world. Stories, these stories, are important.

As we share this time together, we gather as a people of this story, recognizing that the One who redeems here (the book), is the One who redeems here (the world), and the Great Storyteller brings that which is shared in the Word, into life itself. That is, God reveals God’s story to us all the time in our everyday living.

The problem is that far too often we miss the story. We don’t look or listen for God speaking to us, and we miss so much. But because stories are important, God never tires of telling us stories, in hopes that we might stop what we’re doing and listen for a Word from God revealed not necessarily on a page, but through people, situations, relationships, and insights.

God has laid upon my heart a story to share with you today. It’s an everyday story. Such a thing could happen to you or me any day. I invite you to listen to this story, then invite God to reveal God’s message for you today, so You might not just understand but be the story of Christ.

Every year in August, Rebecca made her way to the eye doctor to have her eyes checked. She wore contacts which, even though her prescription was not very strong, were necessary for functioning. When it all started she noticed that she had to squint to see things at a distance, but didn’t think much of it, at least not until she started to get the headaches.

The pain would begin around 3 in the afternoon. She could almost set her clock by them, except of course if she didn’t get enough sleep the night before or the environment was darker than usual, then it would come earlier. A small ache in the back of the eyeball would slowly work its way into her brain, and she’d either have to rest, or she would push harder, thus risking a bigger headache. Eventually she decided it was time to get her eyes checked, only to have confirmed that which she already knew. She’d need glasses.

That was five years, three pairs of glasses, and one prescription of contacts ago, and now she was sitting in an odd shaped chair, with contraptions and instruments attached. Beside her hung a detailed poster of an eyeball, advertisements for lasics surgery within arms reach, and a light on the wall, which during the exam would project “E”s up, down, and side to side.

She always liked going to the eye doctor, because it was one of the few times of the year when it was completely quiet. A husband and two kids can make a lot of noise and require so much attention. The quiet and stillness always surprised her. Maybe it’s the dim lighting in the room or that most eye docs seem to be introverts, but Rebecca relished the time alone.

With all that time to sit, her mind began to work. She went through her shopping list, thought about what she needed to buy the kids for school, worked up a meal list for the coming week, and began to get a little anxious when she thought of the vacation coming up. After all, she was the one who really did the work of getting everything packed and ready... But almost out of the blue she remembered the sermon given just two days before, a sermon based around Jesus’ words, “The eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body is full of light. But when they are bad, your body is full of darkness...”

She chuckled to herself thinking again about her initial reaction to that phrase when she heard it read. The whole reason she had visual assistance was because her eyes were bad! But then she remembered the pastor saying, “In the Hebrew world, the eye was a significant symbol. It represented one’s goodness and generosity, and when it was used by rabbi’s to make a point, it was to make one reflect upon their own goodness and generosity. An open eye implied being open to others and giving, while a closed eye implied being closed off and self-focused.”

Rebecca began to think about those in her life whose eyes were opened. A rush of memories came of her grandmother, God bless her soul, who had a special knack for knowing just the right thing to say or do. The smell of her father’s neck came to mind, and how, even as a teenager, she loved to curl up in his lap just to receive that scent and carry it with her throughout the day. It held the very essence of who she saw her father to be – a loving, giving person who would do anything for her – and when it was with her, he was with her, and when he was with her, everything was good.

She thought of Mrs. Taylor, her Sunday School teacher as a child. Rebecca remembered being excited to get to the classroom, as much for the well-planned lessons, as for the way in

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which that wise sage made every child feel that they were the most important person in the world. Of course, the peppermint hard candies Mrs. Taylor gave out didn’t hurt either. Heading to the sanctuary Rebecca would pop the candy in her mouth then sit next to her father and take in the experience of smells, emotions, and memories mixing into a soup of comfort. She was sure that was heaven!

Her mind switched gears, and she began to think of people in her life whose eyes seemed to be closed. Her high school driver’s ed teacher, Mr. Driver, yes, that was his name, who had the personality of a rock and whom every student believed took pleasure in withholding any grade higher than a “B-.”

She remembered the headline in the paper that morning, “Man indicted for beating up and maiming homeless.” She thought of the many people that she encountered each day who simply seemed to exist. Never really engaging in life or relationships or themselves, and how that darkness closed them off from the light that she believed God has placed within all of us.

Then, though she didn’t want to go there, God or her conscience asked the question, “And how are your eyes?”

At first she thought of the obvious, “Well, I’m here for a check up, right?” But she know what the Spirit was saying. Were her eyes filled with light or clouded by darkness? Was she one whom others might say was a shining light – good and generous, and willing to give, or were there parts of her that were dark, or at the least, less willing to give and more focused on herself?

A few things came to mind, like the many times that the church had put out an invitation for volunteers to help which she ignored, saying to herself, “I’m just too busy,” when in the end she simply stayed at home and did what she always did. She thought about what she was like in the grocery store – a woman with blinders on. Grocery list in hand, eyes focused on the shelves, seeking, finding, and getting the task done as quickly as possible...without even noticing the people around her. Some who may have needed to receive a smile or a “hello.”

“How are your eyes?” The words dug deep into her psyche, and she was reminded of how easy it is for her to join the world in thinking about and serving number 1, recognizing full well that number 1 was not God, but self. Those words reminded her that others had been light to her, and that God’s intention was for them to be models for Rebecca. Christ had been alive in them and shared His love through them, so that she might see and receive. Christ needed the same thing to happen through her, but she had to be willing and let Christ use her.

Sitting there in that office, the most unlikely of places, and yet as good a place as any, she remembered the rest of the verses from that day, “...if your body is full of light...it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you...and we do not preach ourselves but Jesus Christ...who shines in our hearts to give light.”

There in that office, in the quiet and stillness, she received her own personalized sermon, and it was powerful and convicting. She was given an invitation to preach Jesus Christ...to be Jesus Christ, the Light of the world. Would she accept it?

Before she could answer ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ the handle of the door begin to turn, and as light poured into the room, a voice said, “So how are your eyes?”

Rebecca smiled...and shined.