“Joy Comes From Letting Go”

Sermon Delivered By Rev. Dick Stetler – December 13, 2015

Centenary United Methodist Church

Zephaniah 3:14-20; Isaiah 12:1-6

    This morning we have lighted the third candle on our Advent Wreath—the Candle of Joy.  We seldom talk about joy because we use other words to communicate this feeling, i.e., relief that some major task is completed, liberation from a stress-filled career, freedom from having to use a walker, or unbridled enthusiasm because someone finally got a promotion. The joy we are going to discuss this morning is a consistent emotion that prevents anything or anyone from ruining our day.  This contented feeling comes from letting go of people and activities in our world that have the potential to disturb our inner world.

    One evening a woman came into my office to discuss her wedding plans.  She was carrying a notebook that was six inches thick.  As I listened to her explain how everything was to be choreographed, I instantly let go of any need to insert myself into her plans.  If clergy could remember that we are here to serve, a lot of turf battles over control issues would never take place.  For weddings like these, I become a curious observer that wants to see what happens.    

    To give you just a sample of what was planned, she had a section in her notebook on the bridesmaids with a timeline for when her attendants were to be in bed the night before the wedding, a time for getting up, having breakfast, getting dressed in casual clothing, going to the beautician, returning to the hotel, dressing for pictures, getting into a limo and having a session with the photographer.  This timeline went on for another paragraph.   

    The day of the wedding, the bride was overcome with anxiety.  Her perspiration was quite visible. She had taken medication to stabilize her emotional state.  During the ceremony she was expressionless and robotic.  There was no appearance of excitement that she had found the right guy and that this was their BIG DAY.

    Her mother had also taken medication to calm her anxiety levels.  When the ceremony was over, the mother commented, "I will not be able to rest until I pay the bill for this reception and all this mess is behind me." Such joy!  Such peace!  Such enthusiasm! All the money that was spent on this massive production and the bride appeared to be a zombie during the entire thing.  She was present but no one was home.  Several people commented to me, "She is definitely on something." This episode occurred because she could not give up control of a single detail.

     These experiences are like you going to a surgeon who has performed 1,500 successful joint replacements, carrying your six inch note book describing how you want the procedure on your body to be performed.  

    I could entertain you all day with stories about people that had to be in total control over their lives, their marriages, their children and their work environment.  As a rule, these people seldom find the happiness that they so desperately want. When they do find it, they discover their joy is fleeting and slips away at the conclusion of some experience.

    We experience joy when we realize that God is a much better manager over the lives of others than we are, when we can instantly let go of all those things that used to hurt our feelings and when we let go of our need for others to live up to our expectations. When we figure out that everyone is going to be exactly as they are, completely independent of our opinions, needs and wants, we can let go of all our stressful responses.  What a wonderful skill to have!

    In our Scripture lessons this morning, both Zephaniah and Isaiah share the same theme of Joy.  The reason for their excitement is easy to identify.  Both of the prophets were announcing to their readers that God was in charge of history.  Both prophets could be summarized by this one verse, "There is no reason for any of you to be afraid of anything."  (Zephaniah 3:15)

    Most life-issues that rob us of our joy are caused by us because we cannot let go of something.  We absolutely need a particular outcome.  Letting go is the only way we can change our world when it is filled with worries, fretting, frustrations and pain.  There is absolutely no need to waste energy because our fearful responses have never been successful in changing anything. 

    People cling to such responses because it is their right to do so. They are correct.  It is everyone's right to cling.  It is also a person's right to bang his or her head against a concrete wall if they wish.  The wall does not care.  It certainly is not going to change what it is or worry that it may be preventing someone from reaching a desired goal.  Life is the same way.  It is far easier to simply let go.

    We have lighted the third Advent candle of joy, as we welcome into our lives Jesus who was a Master of letting go.  Jesus was content to teach people who could not read or write. He was not concerned whether or not his teachings spread outside of the small territory where he spent his life and ministry.  He was not bothered that the religious movers and shakers of his day could not tolerate his message.  He let go of everything including his own life.

    If there was anyone in history that would have been entitled to feel discourage and abandoned it was Jesus.  That did not happen.  If his words fell on deaf ears, so be it.  If everyone that he healed backslid into their former lifestyle, so be it.  Nothing mattered but preaching the truth as he understood it and letting the details up to God.

    Jesus did not permit what was going on in his outer world to disturb what was happening to his inner world.  He knew how to let go of anything that represented an obstacle or threat to his purpose.  Look what happened to his life and teachings.  No one can trace how his message arrived into our lives, but it did, particularly when we consider where and how it started.  Think about that journey of a message coming from an obscure part of the world to influencing our lives in Bermuda.  Think of what is also possible for us when we let go and let God do the creating.  These are God Things that defy explanations.

    A number of years ago, a small United Methodist church located in a rural part of the United States known as the Ozarks, received its first female pastor.  She felt from her chilly reception by the congregation that her appointment to their church was like handing it a death sentence.  Even the women in the church family felt that a man needed to be in their pulpit.

    Karen spent her early months there feeling as though she had contracted leprosy.  When she visited her parishioners, the exchanges were awkward.  She was not invited to the social gathering of many of the church families over the holidays.  She received only two Christmas cards on her first year in her new parish. Karen, however, exhibited high levels of energy and stayed with her purpose to love and serve the needs of her people just as she found them.

    In the springtime the community experienced one of those one hundred-year rain storms.  The water rose so quickly in the river that the only bridge leading into the town gave way to its swift currents.  The citizens were horrified because the loss of their bridge meant an additional hour commute each way to the places where most of them worked. 

    Karen approached the county to see how quickly the bridge could be replaced.  One estimate was three years.  The county planners told her that there was no money in the system for rebuilding her community's bridge.  

    Next, she visited the Missouri State Highway Department.  Officials told her that the bridge was not part of the state's highway system.  Further she was told that rebuilding the bridge was clearly a county matter where it would remain a low priority because its destruction represented an inconvenience and not an emergency.   

    Karen called a hasty meeting of the Administrative Board of the church and told them, "We can build this bridge ourselves."  Some laughed at her naďve idealism. "After all," they thought, "she is an inexperienced, idealistic woman. What does she know about what it takes to build a bridge?" One of the church leaders said, "We pay taxes to the county for this kind of thing; it’s their job to rebuild it."  Karen let go of all of their responses and stayed with the purpose of serving people in her congregation and community.      

    Finally, Karen carried a proposal to her local town council.  The auditorium was crowded because each knew the bridge would be discussed. After listening to her thoughts, the Council members and audience sat there in a deafening silence.  Just then, the silence was broken by a God Thing.  People like Karen, who have learned how to let go of all distractions while staying with their purpose, are very familiar with what happened next.   

    One of the newcomers to the community stood up and said,

I believe the new preacher in our community has a great idea.  What she is suggesting is very doable.  Before I retired and chose to live in your community, I designed, engineered and constructed bridges all over the United States. Our bridge should be no trouble to replace.  The concrete pilings are still in place.  I would be happy to help with this.  Plus, I could call in some favors from some of my former sub-contractors and suppliers here in Missouri so we could borrow their cranes and heavy equipment.

     One of the Council members said, "Who is going to pay for this?"  Karen interrupted enthusiastically, "We will!  If each family will buy as many planks of lumber as they can afford, we will have the bulk of the materials.  Some of us might even supply the labor."  In three months, this retiree with his impressive credentials made everything happen.  The community had their plans, their permits and their materials.  Everyone let go of their skepticism and the bridge that was destroyed earlier was rebuilt.

    The community praised the folks at the United Methodist Church for their vision, leadership and perseverance in the face of being rejected by county and state regulatory agencies. Karen only smiled when her church family received all the credit. A number of people in the community decided to attend their church to hear what else this persistent female preacher had to say.  Within a short period of time Karen had to add a second service.  It is interesting how a critical emergency often brings people together in a way nothing else can.

    Think of all the obstacles that Karen faced when no one wanted her as their pastor and no one supported her on the county or state level to rebuild a washed out bridge.  She stayed with her purpose of serving others in her community in spite of where they were in their thinking. Being discouraged and frustrated did not darken her mind with self-doubt because she had learned how to let go of rejection many years before. Women learn that very early in life.

    Change will happen when people let go of where they are.  We all need to let go of where we are as we reach for the stars.  Once we have developed this skill, we will discover the joy of fearlessly facing the unknowns that will come in our future.