Love Carries You
Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting
Pastor Bob Henry
December 15, 2019
A Reading from the Book of God
Wendell Berry is known as a poet, essayist, environmental activist, cultural critic, and farmer, but he is also considered a novelist. In his novel, Hannah Coulter, (which I highly recommend) he wrote this about love:
Love is what carries you, for it is always there, even in the dark, or most in the dark, but shining out at times like gold stitches in a piece of embroidery.
I absolutely love that quote and its images. Actually, I have played that quote over and over in my mind since the day I read Hannah Coulter several years ago. It speaks to my soul. And It spoke to me again this week as I was preparing this sermon.
Let’s be honest…
How many of us feel overwhelmed currently?
How many of us are not prepared for Christmas?
How many of us have begun to get a little on edge, even argumentative, or testy?
How many of us aren’t looking forward to the family getting together this Christmas? Or maybe you wished they were?
How many of us just aren’t feeling the love this holiday season?
Love is often one of the last emotions or feelings we experience during this crazy time of year.
· Love? I don’t have time for love – I need to wrap presents.
· Love? I don’t have time for love – I need to go to this party, or that concert, or this program.
· Love? I don’t have time for love – I need to clean the house, figure out what to do with the kids, go to the grocery store.
· Love? Bahumbug!
Yet love is more that words or feelings. Love is what our Christmas presents - our giving should be all about.
Love is the attitude we should have when going to parties and to relatives and loved one’s homes.
Love is what we should put into cleaning our homes.
Love should be the inspiration for spending time with our family.
Love should be the impetus for making Christmas cookies, baking wonderful meals, decorating our homes.
But too often it isn’t “love that carries us” as Wendell Berry said, but rather it is obligation, tradition, “keeping up with the Jones” and appearances that we allow to carry us – and then that drop us unexpectedly.
These are the very things that take us into darkness and cause us to miss the true love of Christmas.
In our last meeting, we had some friends named Troy and Kama who were what I would call modern day shepherds. They loved animals and actually took care of an Animal Sanctuary. One morning, Sue and I received a call to come and be with Troy and Kama as one of their special goats, Lilliam, was about to pass. As we stood in the stable watching Troy and Kama care for this creature, we could see the love that they had for Lilliam. It was overwhelming to be in the presence of a real manger with hay, surrounded by other animals who were truly grieving with Troy and Kama over Lilliam. In the silence, you could tangibly see the love and care being shared in this place. I can’t even explain the beauty of this experience and the deep connectedness we felt with all of creation. What we were witnessing was love shining out of that stable. There was a deep sense of love of family among animals and humans. It was love that literally carried them through this “dark” time.
This is what the season is all about. Love shining out of the darkness and bringing everything into perspective.
Take a moment and ponder for yourself, where you have seen “love shining out like gold stitches in a piece of embroidery” in your life lately.
And since we acknowledge that God is love – where has God been carrying you through the darkness of life?
If anyone has experienced being “carried by love through the darkness” it has to be Zechariah and Elizabeth.
They had both been overwhelmed (probably still were).
They probably felt a little unprepared.
I am sure without Zechariah being able to speak or hear it caused some family squabbles – “Can’t you hear me?” “Are you listening?” “Say something already!” “I am pregnant here!”
And as a Jewish Priest – Zechariah I am sure at times struggled with obligations, traditions, and appearances.
Yet today we heard how “love truly carried them through. Take Elizabeth for example - Love carried Elizabeth through.
Love helped Elizabeth believe that her age, her physical body, and her mental capacity would hold up under such miraculous situations.
Love carried her through the worry, the rumors in town, and at the synagogue, the wondering if her body could actually take giving birth (something extremely risky and dangerous for her age and time in history).
For us this morning, what currently has you worried, wondering, even fearing the “darkness” of life?
Are there any “gold stiches” (love) shining through your embroidery (life)?
Love also carried Zechariah, too.
I believe most of us in this room would have a hard time if suddenly we were unable to hear or speak. For Zechariah this was devastating to his job, family, and life in general.
Trying to explain all that had happened to him through tablets must have been extremely frustrating. Today it may have been easier – all he would need is a text plan and lot of emojies!
Every time I read this story, I can’t help but think of the times I have left “speechless” by something that has happened in my life – and then literally not being able to shut up about God’s faithfulness and love for me afterwards.
I remember a few years ago when I received a phone call right as I arrived at work that my parents had been in a horrific care accident (on my wife’s birthday). I was speechless. I had not words. Literally the world lost sound and I struggled to speak. But as they recovered and I saw God’s love through the people around me – my joy could not be contained. I feel today, my entire family has new voices because God’s love carried us through the darkness of that time.
Again, take a moment to ask yourself - what in your life has caused you to be “speechless”? How has or is God given(ing) you a new voice?
Zechariah broke into song and prophecy! He let loose all that was bottled up inside him for those 9 months! He had time to process, to get over some of the worries and anxieties. When he finally had the opportunity to speak again – he began with a series of blessings.
Blessed be the Lord of Israel.
He then exclaimed how God had blessed his people, his ancestors, his family.
And finally he picks up John in his arms and blesses him.
Folks, what if our response at the end of a time of waiting or going through darkness was to bless as Zechariah did?
I think it is interesting that iword.com defines blessings as:
1. The “act of words” of one that blesses (how appropriate for one who had no words).
2. Help and approval of God.
3. A thing conducive to happiness or welfare.
Whom, with your own words, do you need to bless this Christmas? Who are you noticing being a blessing in your life, family, work, etc…
When we bless each other we spread happiness and welfare and we too become the LOVE that carries each other through. Folks, let us work to be the love and blessing this Christmas!