June 23, 2024

by | Jun 23, 2024 | sermons

Scripture Readings: Exodus 25:1-8, 26:31-33

The LORD said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites to make an offering to me. Receive whatever offerings anyone wishes to give. These offerings are to be: gold, silver, and bronze; fine linen;  blue, purple, and red wool; cloth made of goats’ hair; rams’ skin dyed red; fine leather; acacia  wood; oil for the lamps; spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet-smelling incense; carnelians and other jewels to be set in the ephod of the High Priest and in his breast piece. The people must make a sacred Tent for me, so that I may live among them…

…Make a curtain of fine linen woven with blue, purple, and red wool. Embroider it with figures  of winged creatures. Hang it on four posts of acacia wood covered with gold, fitted with hooks, and set in four silver bases. Place the curtain under the row of hooks in the roof of the Tent, and put behind the curtain the Covenant Box containing the two stone tablets. The curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place.

Sermon  

  1. The image of a tangled ball of yarn has been haunting me like one of those prophetic dreams in the Old Testament.
    1. When my daughter Evy was growing up, she loved making things with fibers and yarn, and I would find tangled balls of yarn in her room all the time.
    2. Sometimes at night in front of the TV, I would take one of those tangles of yarn and  untangle it, then roll it into a neat ball. It was so calming!
    3. It made me feel like I was creating a little order out of chaos.
  2. Sometimes that’s what I try to do as an interim minister!
    1. I want to come in and problem-solve so the new pastor can meet a perfect church!
    2. But I’ve learned that sometimes a little chaos, a few tangles are a necessary part of the process.
  3. I went to the bible looking for stories about tangled yarn, and I found a few references to  weaving and fabric.
    1. The story we hear today is about how the tabernacle was built by the Israelites as they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years.
    2. They were instructed to collect offerings of thread and yarn and weave them into  huge tapestries that would become the fabric walls of a resplendent tent,
    3. Inside the tent would be housed the holy of holies: the ark of the covenant.
    4. And as the people migrated, the tent with the ark would move with them.
    5. It seems so simple—God’s people wandering in the desert, moving their beloved values around with them, and learning to trust God to take care of them.
  4. I wish church could be that simple today! But churches are not simple. They are like tangled webs of connections, emotions, rituals and history.
  5. I’ve now been at Lyndale about 6 months and I’ve encountered a number of different tangles here;
    1. You are a church full of contradictions/polarities:
      1. You are both long time older members and new members who don’t remember the old church
      2. You are your own unique congregation AND a covenant partner with the other SpringHouse churches
      3. There is the unique relationship between Lyndale the local church and the Center for Sustainable Justice
      4. You have a passion for activism AND you long for pastoral care AND deep theological exploration (you want it all!)
      5. You call yourselves progressives, but your opinions and theology are wide-ranging!
      6. You are a small, close-knit family, AND yet I’ve been told you sometimes experience a lack of unity, with everyone going in different directions.
    2. One tangle at Lyndale is that you have experienced a succession of losses and disruptions, over a couple years, from medical leaves and accidents to pastoral departures.
      1. And not just pastoral losses, but the loss of significant lay leaders who either left or died.
      2. All of this as our churches experiencing continuing decline.
  6. The tangle we address today at the congregational meeting is your financial situation–
    1. You are an extraordinarily generous congregation
      1. Acts of service and advocacy
      2. And financial giving has been generous!
      3. But even still, your deficit spending has increased
    2. What I’ve heard you saying:
      1. Some: Let’s do the best mission we can and not worry too much about the money;  
      2. Some: Let’s pull back spending and save money so we can become more sustainable for a longer future
      3. Some: let’s raise more money:
        1. the ThriveTeam is organizing itself again.
      4. Some: Let’s not change too much because we’re fragile right now.
  7. All these arguments have merit! But you are not all in agreement about any one of them. So, regardless of the budget you vote on today, I want to be sure of two things:
    1. that you stay connected to each other in the conversation, keep listening and don’t form divisions
    2. you stay open to new behaviors and change. Because whatever you do, you’re going to need to adapt to changing circumstances.
  8. As you make decisions about this budget and your financial behavior for the next year, here are some things to ask:
    1. What core values and ministries do you want to express and maintain (what is that ark of the covenant you want to carry) that is so valuable you are willing to borrow from your future for it?
    2. And for how long do you want to continue borrowing from your future?
      1. Do you want to do keep doing the best ministry you can and trust God to provide for the future?
      2. Do you want to start making a plan for the next significant change in your ministry? (you have demonstrated that you can make significant change when you want to)
      3. Do you want to do nothing and ask your next pastor to untangle this?
    3. If you rein in spending, how will you choose what to sacrifice and what to keep, while trying to preserve the unity of the church?
    4. Are you willing to let go of things that benefit you now in favor of things that may benefit the Church in the future?
    5. Will each of you avoid the urge to stomp off if you don’t get your way?
    6. Are you willing to seek new sources of revenue for the ministry? The Thrive team is looking at fundraisers, but also encouraging planned giving, designated gifts to your endowment, Reparations and OCWM
    7. One important question to me is: How do you want the Search Committee to interpret for candidates the decisions you are making now?
    8. Remember this isn’t just about what YOU want! You are the Church for everyone present and future, inside and outside these walls.
  9. We won’t get all the snarls untangled by the time I’m done here. But the goal is not to have an orderly ball of yarn
    1. The goal is to create a beautiful tapestry.
    2. A moveable house for the values we cherish.
    3. And you are already a beautiful tapestry!
    4. Being tangled doesn’t make you bad.
    5. All the colors are there; all the textures are there;
    6. But everything God needs to make this ministry transform the world is here!
    7. What we see as a tangle God sees as a beautiful tapestry.