St. Paul’s UMC - Rev. Sami Pack-Toner
July 16, 2017
Ezekiel 2:1-3:3
God Calls Shy People, Too!
INTRODUCTION
-I wanted to share one of my favorite scripture stories this morning with you. I am not honestly sure how I stumbled across it a few years ago. It isn’t very popular in churches. The beginning few verses are in the lectionary one time, but the rest is not part of the normal reading list.
-But I wanted to share it today along with some parts of my life for us to begin ministry together. For us to explore the ways in which we all are being called into relationship with God.
-In the Bible, there are many different call stories. God comes to people from all walks of life and speaks to them, summoning them to new walks in life.
-God challenges ordinary people to do extraordinary things in God’s name, with God’s help.
-And God calls a whole myriad of people throughout scriptures.
-Let’s hear the story of Ezekiel’s call and commissioning:
(read Ezekiel 2, 3:1-3)
CLAIRE ZION
-I moved to Great Falls for college in 2006, and I met a woman named Claire. We met by accident…I was sneaking in to a church service, and I slid into the back pew relatively unnoticed.
-But Claire saw me, and soon we were pew partners on Sundays. Claire was in her late 80s. She always had a bottle of sanitizer for after greeting people, and she always snuck out of church early.
-I am a rule-follower, and I will admit it upset me at first when she and another woman constantly left during the last hymn. As time went on, Claire got slower and slower with her escape. Soon, we were barely beating the pastor’s recessional out of the sanctuary.
-Claire watched me leave for seminary, visit when I could, and saw me return to serve Choteau. A couple years ago, her health steadily went downhill from old age. I would visit her in hospice and tell her of my adventures.
-When Shane and I first started dating, I knew she didn’t have much time left, and I wanted her to meet him. So I convinced him to come meet her…in hospice. Which, in hindsight, I am surprised I didn’t scare him off. After seeing his petrified face after that visit, I then realized how weird my job truly is. He told me that is when he realized how weird my job was too.
-Claire passed away two years ago come August, and somewhere along the way, in those 9 years of me knowing her, Claire led me to fall in love with church in a different way. I became formed by the people and the relationships I was making.
-As hard as it is to admit, sneaking out of church early was priming me for my vocation, and it was a vocation I didn’t even know about yet.
FANTASTIC VISIONS
-Our story begins with a man, Ezekiel (I am going to call him Zeke because it’s easier) not knowing what awaited him.
-Zeke has just seen the appearance of the likeness of God, and he fell on his face. This is a sight beyond any imagination. We hear the image of God mentioned a lot in the Bible, but this description seems to be even more intense. Seeing the likeness of God—seeing the kingdom, seeing “what can be”.
-Zeke falls to his knees, and then his face. And the Lord speaks to him. Here we begin our story. And isn’t that the truth?
-One of the lessons I continue to learn in life is that God is a relational God. God wants a relationship with us. God speaks to us in ways we can hear.
-This is one of the many reasons why I love this story in the OT: it has reminded me time and time again that God meets me where I am in life.
-God meets us where we are. The Bible has story after story of God reaching down and being in relationship with mere mortals.
-There are stories of Seraphim and smoke and fire. Burning bushes, earthquakes, snakes, babies.
-God even comes in the sheer silence.
-And when God meets us where we are, there will be fantastic visions.
-We are promised our paths will be lit through faith.
-Visions change our lives; they change the path we tread. They change how we see the world. They change us.
-Like Zeke experiencing God, we too will have visions and dreams with God. And I think they come in many, many different forms.
-Sometimes, experiencing God for me will be an overwhelming feeling of peace about a situation I have been stressing about. Or, it has been reconciliation with an old friend. These are fantastic visions to me because they illustrate moments when God’s loving care and grace were at work in my life—where I was brought more into relationship with God.
-They were moments where God reached out and showed me what could be.
-I think moments shared with God can sneak up on us sometimes. Fantastic visions can shed light on previous moments with God when we may have overseen or even ignored. Hindsight is always 20/20, of course, but I have found it to be true.
-I am a cradle Methodist, and I enjoyed being involved with church. It was there were I learned about my worth. I learned that women could be pastors. In fact, I didn’t really have a consistent male pastor until seminary. When I was little, I am sure I assumed men couldn’t be pastors.
-I enjoyed youth group. I really enjoyed coffee hour, but I never would have guessed those times growing up would be fantastic visions with God for my future. Those beliefs I was passively learning were for me; for today. I also found my place with God in my quietness.
-I had strong female examples in my life, and they became fantastic visions. I had a church family who kept an eye on me, and they became fantastic visions.
-I was headed in a different direction though. I wanted to be in the FBI up until 2009, but that is probably for another day, another sermon.
-In my journey of chasing a career in criminal justice, I wrestled with my sensitivity and quiet demeanor. I eventually decided it was not for me.
-And about as quickly as my dream career dissolved, another dream began to develop. Like a fantastic vision, I found myself gravitating toward a church community in Great Falls where I was going to college.
-And those times growing up began to make sense. The dreams and visions began to become clear.
-All of a sudden, my faith became very important to me. I lost friends because of it, and I began to change my life.
-I was helping with youth group in Great Falls, and I got roped into helping with CONVO. This was the LAST thing I wanted to do. My already-rocky friendships and my need to keep the peace were causing me to regret agreeing to help all weekend. It was also not the first choice for an introvert.
-It was there, in my stubbornness and regret, I heard a call from God to entertain a career in ministry.
-It was here where I knew that God called shy people. God calls introverts to be bold voices of good news.
-It was bittersweet because it also meant that I would have to be bold and not hide. It meant there would be times I wanted to be shy…but would be able to.
-My worry about being too sensitive for the FBI can’t hold I turned away from a demanding career of high stress and difficult situations, and have entered a demanding career of high stress and difficult situations…and also public speaking.
THE QUIET ZEKE
-Now, Zeke says nothing the entire scene.
-He doesn’t protest what God is telling him. He also doesn’t appear to be jumping up and down either.
-God tells Zeke to stand, but then before he can answer, protest, or attempt to stand on his own, God’s spirit fills Zeke, and he stands.
-That moment at CONVO,God told me to stand, and then immediately filled me with God’s spirit to help me stand.
I AM SENDING YOU—DO NOT BE AFRAID
-So, what does God say to Zeke first after he stands? “I am sending you—do not be afraid.”
-This is emphasized in our story not only for poetic beauty but also because some of the most painful phrases to hear are “God has not called you.” “You are not worthy of love.” “You are not called.”
-Reassurance to Zeke of his future task—though difficult—is a task he is sent to by God.
-At this time in history, a phrase like “God has not called you” chanted by crowds would possibly end a prophet’s life.
-Rejection and antagonism while chasing dreams is something all of us experience. Beginning to hear the weight of his commissioning, Zeke may have begun to believe the antagonist—the naysayers.
-To be told your future will be met with pure and constant pushback is a bit shocking. Tough to take.
-But there is good news in God telling Zeke that Israel will be stubborn: this means his success does not hinge on their response. Their response does not change the fact that he has been called.
-Success of following God’s calls in our lives only depends on our response. Our proclamation. Our character.
-Our mission in our churches doesn’t hinge upon the world’s response. We are to speak the word whether they listen or not.
-We are not to be dismayed. We have the spirit with us.
-So what are those moments we find in our lives where we are continually reassured of our calling and told to not be afraid?
-Like I said earlier, my struggle with my quiet demeanor has been a big part of my journey. I have been told I am too quiet for ministry, that introverts can’t be pastors, and that my stature with hinder my career.
-But here I am…still the same quiet person God spoke to at that youth retreat.
-I like to think of Zeke as a quiet, thoughtful person whom God called to be a voice of reality in a world of dishonesty. That God saw all that Zeke was, and all that he could be, and he became an instrument of God’s peace. Who he was made that possible.
HOW DO WE REMEMBER THAT GOD CALLS “MERE MORTALS”?
-At the end of our passage, God touches Zeke’s mouth and has him eat a scroll with God’s message on it. For Zeke, those words were words of sorrow and woe. They reflect the time Zeke was living in—a time that was grim, complex, and painful.
-Being reminded the whole experience that he is mortal probably didn’t help his anxiety either.
-It is easy to count ourselves out of commissions like this one because we are mere mortals. We dismiss ourselves with some of the best excuses in the book. We don’t need an audience of people telling us God hasn’t sent us…we can do that well on our own.
-To me, God reminding Zeke of his mortality isn’t exactly to put him in his place, but almost to encourage him that this commissioning is possible—it will be difficult—but it is possible as a mortal.
-The Spirit makes it possible. Grace makes it possible. Our communities of faith make it possible.
CONCLUSION
-I have come to embrace my quiet demeanor most days. I have begun seeing it as a gift rather than a problem. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t come without struggle—I am sure you all will realize that.
-And, for as many people who have told me negative things about my character and demeanor, I have been supported ten-fold.
-I am very excited to begin this new journey with all of you. I want to hear about your fantastic visions for this church community. I want to hear about the ways you have felt the Spirit lift you onto your feet and set your heart ablaze.
-What are your dreams for this church community? -What are the fantastic visions you have seen lately?
-Where do you see God at work here? Let us pray: (prayer)