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“Potatoes, Broccoli and Carrots” Sermon Delivered By Guest Speaker – October 16,
2016 Leo Mills, Attorney Lay Leader, Wesley Methodist Church Bermuda
Psalm
16:1-9; 16-18; Romans 12:1-8
The Psalmist, David, in Psalm 139:14, helpfully reminds us that
we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” – each of us having our own
distinctive character, our own distinctive attributes, our own
distinctive strengths (and weaknesses) and our own distinctive skills
and abilities These are the qualities and characteristics that make us each
unique, each of us different, each of us one of a kind and which
provides us with the ability to cut our own distinctive path in life.
It’s what makes you you and me me. We are, indeed, “fearfully and wonderfully made.” Just as each person contributes something different to life, to
society, to the church, to our families and to our homes, to our
workplaces and to the organizations to which we belong, so too we – as
members of the Household of Faith – have much to contribute to society
at large, much to enrich it, much to strengthen it, much to sustain it,
much to influence it for the better. Potatoes, broccoli and carrots. Some like all three. Some like
perhaps one or two of them. Some like none of them. Each is distinctive – in flavor, in texture, in taste. Each is
unique. Each is different. Each impacts our taste buds differently. Each
has a different boiling point – just like us; but, if the conditions are
right, if the temperature is perfect, these vegetables will emerge from
the pot cooked perfectly. With the perfect conditions, we too can
achieve the best in life. What would a good Bermudian stew be without some potatoes, some
broccoli, some carrots coupled with some tender beef, chicken, lamb or
pork? Perhaps,
with some fluffy dumplings thrown in for good measure? It is the combined flavor of these vegetables that gives the stew
both its hearty aroma and its delicious taste. In a different, but
related sense, our individual attributes are what gives flavor to our
own lives, the way we interact with those around us, the way we treat
them and are treated in return. Potatoes, broccoli and carrots. Ephesians 4:11 reminds us that, in spite of our religious
diversity, or, because of it, each of us was created to be different –
for a purpose – to be unique, to embody different skills and abilities –
all to be used for the greater glory of the God we serve and adore. Paul reminds us, in his Letter to the Church at Ephesus, that
whatever skills we have, whatever abilities we may possess, whatever
talents we have can be used to glorify The Father who is in heaven. Some have the gift of being apostles. Some have the gift of being
teachers. Some have the gift of being prophets. Some have the gift of
being evangelists. Some have the gift of being pastors. Some have the
gift of hospitality. Some have the gift of humour. Some have the gift of
music. Some have the gift of a warm and welcoming smile. Potatoes, broccoli and carrots. We recall that in Luke chapters 6 and 8, is recorded the way in
which Our Lord selected his Disciples – the people who would, in effect,
take on ‘the great commission’ and go out into the world to change it in
a very profound and lasting way. He didn’t select only those people who were the intellectuals of
the day. He didn’t select only those people who were professionals. He
didn’t select only those people who were from the upper echelons of
society. He didn’t select only those who were rich or well-off or who
lived in nice neighbourhoods or who attended the “right” schools. Our Lord made some surprising selections. Some were fishermen.
Some were carpenters. Some were tradesmen. On other occasions, His
choices were, frankly, rather shocking. Some whom He
chose to be the promoters of the Gospel were unlikely candidates: Saul,
who later became Paul, and who was a notorious persecutor of the early
Christians. Rahab who was, as we might say in polite circles, “a lady of
the night.” Then, there was David, a man anointed by God, but who, as we
learn from The Psalms, also had his own character flaws but was still
used by God in mighty ways. Then, there was Nicodemus – a public
official, a tax collector, who lined his own pockets, but, in the light
of God’s salvation and forgiveness, made good restitution and changed
the course and trajectory of his own life – and that of others. What these
personal stories reveal to us is God’s amazing grace and forgiveness and
that, whatever our status in life; whatever our sins and errors may have
been; whatever it is that we have done to disappoint God; whatever and
however we have “fallen short,” God’s reach and God’s grace is long
enough and powerful enough and effective enough to make us all that He
wants us to be and all that we are capable of being. He can take
the least of us and make the best of us.
I am reminded of this great hymn of the faith: Take my life
and let it be, Consecrated, Lord, to Thee; Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
Let them flow in ceaseless praise. Potatoes, broccoli and carrots. Just as
these vegetables, when properly cooked and prepared, can become part of
a delicious stew, so too can we – each of us who names the Name of Jesus
Christ – become part of that urgent and continuing effort to make
Bermuda all that it can be – for all her people. Back of town. Tucker’s Town. Friswell’s Hill. Trimingham Hill.
Lighthouse Road. Marsh Folly Road. Mullet Bay. Sinky Bay. Bob’s Valley
Lane. Chapel of Ease Lane. Different locations. Different people. Different neighbourhoods.
But, all Bermudians. All working towards a common goal. All working for
a common purpose. All striving to use their special and individual
skills, talents and abilities to make Bermuda better. To make Bermuda
the place we all want it to be. To make our individual and collective
witness be seen, felt and manifested throughout every single road, lane
and parish in the Island. As the
people of God, and in the strength which He supplies, we have in
our hands the abilities and the individual and collective capacities to
turn this Island around. No longer potatoes or broccoli or carrots: just everybody working
together for the common good. No better example of this than the visit
we had last week from Hurricane Nicole. Both before, during and after the visit, Bermudians and residents
alike forgot their differences, forgot the things that often drive them
apart, forgot their disagreements and focused instead on helping each
other, helping those in need. What if –
what if the spirit generated by Hurricane Nicole lived with us every
day, every week, every month, every year. No more potatoes on their own.
No more broccoli on its own. No more carrots on their own. Just a
wonderful tasty stew of brotherhood and togetherness which we can all
enjoy, every day, in friendship, joy and love. Potatoes, broccoli and carrots. It is certainly true that life in Bermuda today is far more
complex than anything our parents or grandparents may have experienced
in their lifetimes. This is not the Bermuda of the 1950’s or the 1960’s
or even the 1970’s – as nostalgic for those days as we may get from time
to time. Much of what
we took for granted or accepted as being the norm has, in many ways,
been swept away or watered down or cast aside or derided as being out of
touch, old fashioned, culturally insensitive or mocked as being out of
touch with what’s going on ‘in the real world’. But, it is
exactly in such circumstances that we need to hold fast to our faith;
hold fast to that which has served us well by providing us with
standards and guidelines and parameters and boundaries; hold fast to our
commitment to constantly seek perfection so that we become – in deed and
in truth – ‘new creatures in Christ Jesus’; to hold fast to that Anchor
that ‘keeps the soul, steadfast and sure while the billows roll;
fastened to the Rock which cannot move, grounded firm and deep in The
Saviour’s love’. That is our
goal. That is our mission. That is the height to which we need to
ascend. That is what faith is all about. We have the
skills we need to transform society and to make it the model community
of which we sometimes get a glimpse, especially when stormy weather
threatens. The question for us is: ‘Can we resolve what divides us and
focus instead on what unites us and then move forward - together?’
That’s what
John Wesley did when he founded Methodism. That’s what General Booth did
when he founded The Salvation Army. That’s what Martin Luther did when
he founded the Lutheran Church. That’s what Billy Graham did when he
founded and gave voice to The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. I am convinced that, as a community, we have the faith we need to
build an ever stronger and more secure foundation for action and for
success, knowing that God Himself is with us for our Captain (Second
Chronicles 13:12). Potatoes, broccoli and carrots. Everyone has
a gift. Our responsibility it is recognize it, to nurture it, to
cultivate it, to share it, to live it. Potatoes, broccoli and carrots. AMEN…. |