What I learned at Vacation Bible School
Delivered on July 4th, 2010 at The United Church of Winchester, NH
Opening Song - This Land is Your Land performed by Tony Yiannakos.
Responsive Call to Worship
It is Possible to Live in Peace, by Gandhi
Leader: If someone with courage and vision can rise to lead in nonviolent action, the winter of despair can, in the twinkling of an eye, be turned into the summer of hope.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: Nonviolence is not a garment to put on and off at will. Its seat is in the heart, and it must be an inseparable part of our being.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: Nonviolence, which is a quality of the heart, cannot come by an appeal to the brain. It is a plant of slow growth, growing imperceptibly, but surely.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: If a single person achieves the highest kind of love it will be sufficient to neutralize the hate of millions.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: If we are to reach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: The future depends on what we do in the present.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Call to Confession
Now is the time in our service when we, too, turn back and forswear our foolish ways. It is our time of confession, of speaking of our sins, the times when we have missed the mark and fallen short of both our own goals, and God's. Please join me in reading our prayer of confession, together:
Prayer of Confession (unison)
God of Gods, hear our confession now. We are humans, full of life and joy and yet also frail and prone to mistakes and errors. Our own inaction and inattention has brought about the wars of the world, the oil spills, the abused and neglected children. Put upon this world to tend it and keep it safe, we have instead used it up and dirtied it almost beyond repair. Instead of seeking resolution for our world, we seek other, untouched places to spoil. We metaphorically stick our fingers in our ears, and refuse to hear the words of your prophets, be they church men and women or scientists with dire predictions.
Leader:
Each of us, too, has silent confessions to make. None of us is free of sin, as none of us is perfect, able to always hit the mark. Take a moment and speak in the silence of your mind; confess to God that which troubles you.
Moment of silence.
Assurance of Forgiveness
Lord, do not leave us; do not forget us. Teach us once again, like the wayward children we are, to tend and care for Your Creation. Let us always remember that the Earth, and we, are a part of You. We know that when we admit our faults, and make careful amends and work toward bettering ourselves and our world, then we are forgiven. Amen.
Sermon - What I learned in Vacation Bible School
We've been talking about the Fruits of the Spirit, and our first fruit is watermelon. I thought this was a good one to talk about on Fourth of July, the Day of Independence. I'm also celebrating a little independence day of my own, namely independence from Vacation Bible School.
Think on the watermelon for a little bit. It's a sweet fruit, very juicy. I love them! The only problem, of course, is the seed that sometimes gets caught in your mouth. I spit those out; do you? For me, the watermelon symbolizes 4th of July very well. The fruit here represents the juicy, fun things in life. Those are the parts we love to sink our teeth into. It's the joyous part of the fruit. The rind is easy to avoid, easy to see... it represents the clear temptations we can ignore or walk away from. The seeds, though, are trickier. If you're not careful you can accidentally swallow one, or bite through it and get that bitter flavor in your mouth. I hate when that happens. The seeds are like the bad times, the parts we'd like to get rid of, but that are so difficult to spot until we're already in the middle of them.
Still, the whole of the watermelon is useful, isn't it? The meat of it is good to eat, and the rind can be made into watermelon rind pickles, or can be used to create good, rich compost. The seeds can be dried and then planted next year to provide food and sustenance for the future.
In life, sometimes it's difficult for us to see the good in the seeds we come across. We see only the black wrongness of them, and try to spit them out, get rid of them. Part of our journey in life is to find the good in those seeds, find the way to germinate them, and bring them into new, whole fruit that fills us again and again.
Two weeks ago, our Religious Education Director and I had the pleasure (and stress) of hosting Vacation Bible School here at the church. It was one of the toughest jobs I've ever done, and I'll admit that at the end of the first day, those seeds looked awfully overwhelming. All I could find in my heart was the upset, my own feelings of failure, and a deep disappointment in myself and the kids. I was discouraged. But B-- and Pastor A-- and others buoyed me up, and I returned the next day. Lo and behold, it was easier! I began to see some of the fruit that would come out of the seeds of our classes. I began to see some of my own seeds, being planted in the minds of the children who attended VBS.
A wall pad with much writing on it was displayed at the front of the church. It was a compilation of all the notes that the kids had made throughout the full week of VBS. There was information about Bible quotes, Biblical heroes, and our fruits of the spirit: peace, love, gratitude, joy, faithfulness, goodness, and patience. I spent about five minutes going over the gems of faith that our children had presented to us throughout VBS, and shared them with the congregation.
Each of our kids was unique. Each gave us something special by attending. Each taught us new skills and gave us new ideas. Was it easy? Not on your life! Yet it was worthwhile. When I watched the faces of those children light up at the results of their science experiments, I knew I had done the right thing.
It reminds me a bit of the story of the starfish. Are any of you familiar with it? No? Well, then...
One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a child picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean. Approaching the child, he asked, “What are you doing?”
The youth replied, “Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them back, they'll die.”
“Child,” he said, “don't you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can't make a difference!”
After listening politely, the child bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at him, the child said, “I made a difference for THAT ONE.”
If we made a difference for just one kid, then it was worth everything. We can't save everyone, and we can't educate everyone. No one person can do everything. But we can make a difference in our corner of the world. We can clean up OUR yard. We can build OUR church. We can help OUR children. We can volunteer at OUR food banks or soup kitchens.
If every one of us did one thing, think how much better the world could be? One of the games we played with the kids was a trash treasure hunt. For every piece of trash they brought us and put into the garbage bag, they got a prize out of my pirate box. In the space of a half hour or so, we filled a bag with garbage, cleaned up the parsonage and parking lot, AND had a ton of fun with the kids. Just one little game created such peace.
In Galatians, we heard Paul write, “if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness.” We tried to teach this to the children. The way to help your neighbors follow the rules, was to follow them yourselves. Be a good example. Be nice to one another.
Benediction
I leave you with the words of Mark L. Belletini:
Go in peace. Live simply, gently, at home in yourselves.
Act justly.
Speak justly.
Remember the depth of your own compassion.
Forget not your power in the days of your powerlessness.
Do not desire to be wealthier than your peers and stint not your hand of charity.
Practice forebearance.
Speak the truth, or speak not.
Take care of yourselves as bodies, for you are a good gift.
Crave peace for all people in the world,
beginning with yourselves,
and go as you go with the dream of that peace alive in your heart.
Postlude - Spirit in the Sky by Norman Greenbaum.
Opening Song - This Land is Your Land performed by Tony Yiannakos.
Responsive Call to Worship
It is Possible to Live in Peace, by Gandhi
Leader: If someone with courage and vision can rise to lead in nonviolent action, the winter of despair can, in the twinkling of an eye, be turned into the summer of hope.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: Nonviolence is not a garment to put on and off at will. Its seat is in the heart, and it must be an inseparable part of our being.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: Nonviolence, which is a quality of the heart, cannot come by an appeal to the brain. It is a plant of slow growth, growing imperceptibly, but surely.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: If a single person achieves the highest kind of love it will be sufficient to neutralize the hate of millions.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: If we are to reach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Leader: The future depends on what we do in the present.
People: It is possible to live in peace.
Call to Confession
Now is the time in our service when we, too, turn back and forswear our foolish ways. It is our time of confession, of speaking of our sins, the times when we have missed the mark and fallen short of both our own goals, and God's. Please join me in reading our prayer of confession, together:
Prayer of Confession (unison)
God of Gods, hear our confession now. We are humans, full of life and joy and yet also frail and prone to mistakes and errors. Our own inaction and inattention has brought about the wars of the world, the oil spills, the abused and neglected children. Put upon this world to tend it and keep it safe, we have instead used it up and dirtied it almost beyond repair. Instead of seeking resolution for our world, we seek other, untouched places to spoil. We metaphorically stick our fingers in our ears, and refuse to hear the words of your prophets, be they church men and women or scientists with dire predictions.
Leader:
Each of us, too, has silent confessions to make. None of us is free of sin, as none of us is perfect, able to always hit the mark. Take a moment and speak in the silence of your mind; confess to God that which troubles you.
Moment of silence.
Assurance of Forgiveness
Lord, do not leave us; do not forget us. Teach us once again, like the wayward children we are, to tend and care for Your Creation. Let us always remember that the Earth, and we, are a part of You. We know that when we admit our faults, and make careful amends and work toward bettering ourselves and our world, then we are forgiven. Amen.
Sermon - What I learned in Vacation Bible School
We've been talking about the Fruits of the Spirit, and our first fruit is watermelon. I thought this was a good one to talk about on Fourth of July, the Day of Independence. I'm also celebrating a little independence day of my own, namely independence from Vacation Bible School.
Think on the watermelon for a little bit. It's a sweet fruit, very juicy. I love them! The only problem, of course, is the seed that sometimes gets caught in your mouth. I spit those out; do you? For me, the watermelon symbolizes 4th of July very well. The fruit here represents the juicy, fun things in life. Those are the parts we love to sink our teeth into. It's the joyous part of the fruit. The rind is easy to avoid, easy to see... it represents the clear temptations we can ignore or walk away from. The seeds, though, are trickier. If you're not careful you can accidentally swallow one, or bite through it and get that bitter flavor in your mouth. I hate when that happens. The seeds are like the bad times, the parts we'd like to get rid of, but that are so difficult to spot until we're already in the middle of them.
Still, the whole of the watermelon is useful, isn't it? The meat of it is good to eat, and the rind can be made into watermelon rind pickles, or can be used to create good, rich compost. The seeds can be dried and then planted next year to provide food and sustenance for the future.
In life, sometimes it's difficult for us to see the good in the seeds we come across. We see only the black wrongness of them, and try to spit them out, get rid of them. Part of our journey in life is to find the good in those seeds, find the way to germinate them, and bring them into new, whole fruit that fills us again and again.
Two weeks ago, our Religious Education Director and I had the pleasure (and stress) of hosting Vacation Bible School here at the church. It was one of the toughest jobs I've ever done, and I'll admit that at the end of the first day, those seeds looked awfully overwhelming. All I could find in my heart was the upset, my own feelings of failure, and a deep disappointment in myself and the kids. I was discouraged. But B-- and Pastor A-- and others buoyed me up, and I returned the next day. Lo and behold, it was easier! I began to see some of the fruit that would come out of the seeds of our classes. I began to see some of my own seeds, being planted in the minds of the children who attended VBS.
A wall pad with much writing on it was displayed at the front of the church. It was a compilation of all the notes that the kids had made throughout the full week of VBS. There was information about Bible quotes, Biblical heroes, and our fruits of the spirit: peace, love, gratitude, joy, faithfulness, goodness, and patience. I spent about five minutes going over the gems of faith that our children had presented to us throughout VBS, and shared them with the congregation.
Each of our kids was unique. Each gave us something special by attending. Each taught us new skills and gave us new ideas. Was it easy? Not on your life! Yet it was worthwhile. When I watched the faces of those children light up at the results of their science experiments, I knew I had done the right thing.
It reminds me a bit of the story of the starfish. Are any of you familiar with it? No? Well, then...
One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a child picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean. Approaching the child, he asked, “What are you doing?”
The youth replied, “Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them back, they'll die.”
“Child,” he said, “don't you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can't make a difference!”
After listening politely, the child bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at him, the child said, “I made a difference for THAT ONE.”
If we made a difference for just one kid, then it was worth everything. We can't save everyone, and we can't educate everyone. No one person can do everything. But we can make a difference in our corner of the world. We can clean up OUR yard. We can build OUR church. We can help OUR children. We can volunteer at OUR food banks or soup kitchens.
If every one of us did one thing, think how much better the world could be? One of the games we played with the kids was a trash treasure hunt. For every piece of trash they brought us and put into the garbage bag, they got a prize out of my pirate box. In the space of a half hour or so, we filled a bag with garbage, cleaned up the parsonage and parking lot, AND had a ton of fun with the kids. Just one little game created such peace.
In Galatians, we heard Paul write, “if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness.” We tried to teach this to the children. The way to help your neighbors follow the rules, was to follow them yourselves. Be a good example. Be nice to one another.
Benediction
I leave you with the words of Mark L. Belletini:
Go in peace. Live simply, gently, at home in yourselves.
Act justly.
Speak justly.
Remember the depth of your own compassion.
Forget not your power in the days of your powerlessness.
Do not desire to be wealthier than your peers and stint not your hand of charity.
Practice forebearance.
Speak the truth, or speak not.
Take care of yourselves as bodies, for you are a good gift.
Crave peace for all people in the world,
beginning with yourselves,
and go as you go with the dream of that peace alive in your heart.
Postlude - Spirit in the Sky by Norman Greenbaum.
