Your Deep Gladness and the World's Deep Hunger

Sermon preached by the Rev. Lowell E. Grisham, Rector
St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Fayetteville, Arkansas
January 25, 2009; 3 Epiphany, Year B
Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary

(Mark 1:14-20) – Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea-- for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
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"Follow me and I will make you fish for people."

Who would have thought that the fulfillment of life for these four fishermen – Simon and Andrew, James and John – would have been fishing for people instead of doing what they had always done – fish for fish? Yet something about Jesus compelled them to take the chance to do something different. And they set their fishing nets into deeper waters.

There is a story told of an obscure woman in London. After attending a lecture by the distinguished naturalist Dr. Louis Agassiz, she complained that she never had a chance to learn. In response, he asked her what she did. She replied that she helped her sister run a boardinghouse by skinning potatoes and chopping onions.

He said, "Madam, where do you sit during these interesting but homely duties?"
"On the bottom step of the kitchen stairs."
"Where do your feet rest?"
"On the glazed brick."
"What is glazed brick?"
"I don't know, sir."
He said, "How long have you been sitting there?'
She said, "Fifteen years."
"Madam, here is my personal card," said Dr. Agassiz. "Would you kindly write me a letter concerning the nature of a glazed brick?"

She took him seriously. She looked it up in the dictionary. She read an article in the encyclopedia and discovered that glazed brick is vitrified kaolin and hydrous aluminum silicate. Not knowing what that meant, she looked it up. She went to museums. She studied geology. She went to a brickyard and learned about more than 120 kinds of bricks and tiles. Then she wrote a 36-page treatise on the topic of glazed brick and tile, which she sent to Dr. Agassiz.

He wrote back, offering to pay her $250 if she would allow him to publish the article. Then he asked: "What was under those bricks?"

She replied, "Ants."
He said, "Tell me about the ants."

She then researched ants in depth, after which she wrote 360 pages on the subject and sent it to Dr. Agassiz. He published it as a book, and with the proceeds she was able to travel to places she had always wanted to see.

(story attributed to Morman leader Marion D. Hanks,
quoted from Stephen M.R. Covey, The Speed of Trust p. 99-100)

Frederick Buechner famously said, "The place God calls you is where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." Sometimes we sense this calling when one of the world's deep hungers grabs our attention. There is some need that touches your heart, and you are drawn to respond. That's how most of the ministries here at St. Paul's got started. Patty Sullivan saw that a group of parents would like to connect with one another about the hard work of raising children. She started a class on Sunday mornings for them. Kimberly Gross found there was a gap in the social fabric; homeless neighbors could get night shelter and a morning and evening meal, but there was no support for them during the day. Our Vestry helped her start the Seven Hills Homeless Center. An Episcopalian from Little Rock asked us to visit his daughter in the Women's Correction Center just down College Avenue. We found a deep hunger for the Eucharist, and we're about to start a weekly service there. Many of the fifty-plus ministries at St. Paul's began when someone saw a need and was moved to respond.

But God's calling to us also happens in the other direction. Calling also happens from within us, from our own deep gladness – when there is something that we love to do, and so we do it. We express our own spirit and heart, and it becomes our way to bless the world. If we follow the deep gladness of our heart, our heart will find a way to meet the world's deep hunger.

A colleague of mine in Connecticut visited with a widow who was battling a lost sense of meaning since her husband's death. She didn't know what to do with herself.

My friend asked her, "What do you do that comes fairly easily to you, and when you have finished, you have more energy than when you started?" She said, "Nothing that I can think of. But I'll see what I can come up with."

Several days later she returned, saying, "Now you may think this is silly, but I know what I do well. I set a really nice table. I know how to coordinate various foods and flowers, placemats and napkins, and make it all turn out beautiful and delicious."
"Great," he said. "Now how can you turn that into a ministry?"
"I don't know," she said, "but I'll get back to you."

Several days later she returned, saying, "I've got an idea. I see all of those people working in those offices downtown, and I feel sorry for them. My late husband worked close enough to home that he could come home for lunch every day. I would set a nice table for him, and we sat down together and had some of our best times eating lunch with each other. I'd like to do something like that for these men and women who work downtown near our church."

With that she started a weekly luncheon at their church. Before too long it attracted a large business clientele. Many people remarked that her meal was an island of peace and hospitality in the middle of their hectic work-week. Her service brought meaning and new energy to her life as well. The lunch was so appreciated that it continued in her name for years after her death.

(remembered from a conversation with Terry Fullam)

Simon and Andrew, James and John didn't know what their heart was leading them to when they left their nets to accept that enigmatic invitation from Jesus to "follow me and I will make you fish for people." But they sensed a deep gladness when they were with him, and they trusted that gladness enough to follow.

Where do you find deep gladness in your life? Are there things that you like to do? Things that come fairly easily to you, and when you have finished, you have more energy than when you started? We're going to explore that soon during the first four weeks of our new Journey Into Authenticity class. The first part of that class will be a workshop to discover our spiritual gifts.

What do you do naturally and well? What gives your heart deep gladness? If you can think of something, then ask yourself, "How can I turn that into ministry, or service, or vocation or a career?"

The four Galilean fishermen were good at their work. They were good fishermen. But something in their hearts resonated when Jesus invited them to follow him and to fish instead for people. They followed their hearts; they listened to their intuition, left the nets and went with Jesus. With Jesus as their companion, they learned to meet the world's deep hunger with their deep gladness.

Is there a need that catches your attention? What part of the world's deep hunger moves your heart?

What brings you great gladness? What things bring energy to your life?

"The place God calls you is where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." A big part of the work of this church is to help your great gladness meet someone else's deep hunger.
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The Mission of St. Paul's Episcopal Church is to explore and celebrate
God's infinite grace, acceptance and love.

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