A Love that Never Ceases

Scripture Lessons: Lamentations 1: 1-12 and 2 Timothy 1: 1-14 Sermon Title: A Love that Never Ceases Preached on October 6, 2019 Last week I was glad to attend a meeting of the Board of Zoning Appeals. I say I was glad to attend. That was how I felt when I first arrived and not how I felt when I left. You may have read in the paper about a new MUST homeless shelter. In the past, single men were face of homelessness. Today, most of those being turned away from the existing MUST shelter when it hits capacity are single mothers with children. The new shelter is designed to meet their needs. It will have more rooms where mothers and their children can stay together, but before MUST can break ground, first they must gain approval for their new building, hence the request to the Board of Zoning Appeals. This meeting with them was public. Many people showed up, MUST supporters, including former Governor Roy Barnes, as well as residents who live in the area around the current shelter who oppose its construction. These residents were there to voice their opposition to the new shelter, for they fear that should the Board of Zoning Appeals grant MUST’s request, the problems they encounter already with homeless men and women camping out in the woods near their houses will only grow worse by attracting more homeless people. To persuade the Board, each side gave impassioned speeches. All those speeches took a long time, because this board grants a full 20 minutes to each side. That’s a long time to listen, I realized, and made a mental note to keep my sermons shorter. Then the Board took a vote. They sided with the residents. Then I left disappointed, but not entirely because my side lost. The residents made fine points. What disappointed me is that their points were made based on the assumption that even a new shelter will not make our community’s problem with homelessness any better. That’s a demoralizing thought. That’s a sad state of affairs. Thinking that way will make you nearly as depressed as reading our First Scripture Lesson will. That passage from Lamentations is a very sad one, but I didn’t ask Joe Brice to read it to make you sad. I asked him to read it because feeling demoralized is nothing new. Throughout history, some have been brought low by circumstance. What’s inspiring is to remember the faith of those who persevered. This past week in Columbia, TN, a man died who I knew well. He was a member of the church I served there. He was a World War II veteran who, following a mission attempting to destroy Japanese submarines, once spent a long night floating in the Atlantic Ocean when the landing gear of his airplane failed to come down. That happened when he was 19 years old. Do you know what I was doing when I was 19 years old? Some of you do, and so you know it wasn’t that. Considering his strength, it occurs to me how progress has afforded each successive generation just a little bit more safety, maybe a lot more luxury, which is nice, but it’s also dangerous. That’s because as less and less is required of us in this modern era, we may also fall into the illusion that less and less is possible. In our Second Scripture Lesson from the book of 2nd Timothy, Paul the Apostle calls young Timothy, to remember the faith “that lived first in [his] grandmother Lois and [his] mother Eunice and now, [he] is sure, lives” on in him. Calling young Timothy to look back this way was surely inspiring, for there’s a tremendous stock of resilience that awaits us in our history. Paul calls Timothy to remember the faith of his grandmother and mother. That’s helpful, because if we remember what they made it through, what they endured, what they accomplished, surely, we’ll find strength enough in ourselves to continue the race that they started. That’s why Paul writes to Timothy: “their faith, I am sure, live in you. For this reason, I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you.” When Timothy hit a hard time, he needed that reminder. We all do. We all need to remember the resilient heroes of the past to gain the strength we need for today. Certainly, that’s true for me. My least favorite chore is making our girls their school lunches. Sara never asks me to help her with it, because I hate making their lunches so much. I especially deplore the most tedious step in the school lunch making process: finding the lids to the Tupperware that their lunches must be packaged in. I ask you: “What could be worse than making our children lunches?” Thinking back on the lives of my fore parents I’ll tell you: looking in the cupboard and finding it bare. Just two generations ago was the Great Depression, and among us still are those who survived it. Consider them, and don’t tell me we can’t make it through whatever challenges we face today. There is strength enough within us to make it through anything, even to endure the toxic political climate we find ourselves in. Some people will tell you that the partisan divide is worse than it’s ever been. That’s just not true. Look back just 150 years ago when the South declared war on the North. How’s that for a partisan divide? All we have today are some arguing grown-ups, and if you don’t like any of them, then do something about it. At least, take the time to vote. Not everyone does that even. Why? Because the evil one has convinced some of us that they may as well stay at home. That hope is lost. That we’re weak. That nothing can ever change but remember your grandmothers for a minute and rekindle the gift of God that is within you. Do you know what I wish would have happened at the Board of Zoning Appeals last week? I wish someone had said, “If we all work together, there won’t be homeless people in anyone’s’ back yard,” for based on Scripture and the strength of generations, I know we can put all of this city’s men and women and children under a roof, if we’d just try. In the midst of hardship and trial, we must remember that our God’s love is a love that never ceases. He is with us at in our darkest hour, and like the sun, he rises up each morning to lead us to a brighter day. Halleluiah. Amen.