The Rev. Maureen R. Frescott
Congregational Church of
Amherst, UCC
May 1, 2016 – Sixth Sunday
of Easter
Acts 16:9-15
“Looking for
Lydia”
Nearly
400 years ago, a shipload of hearty souls set sail on a journey into uncharted
waters across a great ocean - because they had a vision of establishing a new
home and a new faith community in a new world.
The
people landed on the northeastern coast of the new world, and despite the
arduous conditions it took them only a year to clear land for their homes and
build their church.
In
their second year the people established a town government.
In
their third year the town government set forth plans to build a road that would
run five miles westward into the wilderness.
And
in the fourth year, the people tried to impeach their town government because
they thought it was a waste of public funds to build a road five miles westward
into the wilderness.
Why
would anyone need to go there?
The
moral of this apocryphal story is that a people who once had the vision to see
three thousand miles across an ocean and overcome great hardships to get there,
had in just a few years lost the ability to see even five miles down a
wilderness road.
In
the stories of the early church, we hear about others who had visions of building
a new faith community and a new world.
Last
Sunday we heard about Peter’s vision where God declared all foods to be clean,
opening the church to Gentiles who did not observe Jewish dietary laws.
We
also heard about John’s apocalyptic vision from the book of Revelation – where
he saw God doing away with this world and creating a new earth in its place,
where suffering and death will be no more.
And
today we heard about Paul’s visions – when a blinding light forced him to his
knees on the road to Damascus and he heard the voice of the risen Christ pleading
with him to change his heart - and years later, when yet another vision sent
him westward with Christ’s message, and into the path of Lydia and the first
European converts.
Each
of these visions brought clarity to the individuals who experienced them, and
helped shape the church as we know it today.
We’re
all capable of having visions but most of ours are not as dramatic as these.
When
we’re faced with a dilemma,
or
feel trapped in a situation that we can’t escape,
or find
ourselves wrestling with our inner angels and demons that continuously pull us
in one direction and then another….
it
often takes a vision to help us to find some clarity.
That
sudden “ah-ha” moment when we see a solution to our problem,
or
find a way out of our predicament,
or
decide once and for all that we’re going to choose one path over another.
Whether
we believe these moments of clarity emanate from God or from our own
subconscious, we can’t deny the power of the experience –
the
power of the moment where the scales fall away from our eyes and we wake up and
say, “This is what I need to do.”
Paul
had a vision that sent him to Macedonia.
In
the opposite direction of where he’d been trying to go.
As
we heard in our scripture intro, the vision Paul had was God’s third attempt to
get him turned around in the right direction.
When
Paul tried to travel within the familiar territory of Asia Minor he was blocked
twice, first by the Holy Spirit and then by the spirit of Jesus himself.
We’re
not told how these divine spirits impeded Paul’s progress.
Paul
and his traveling companions may have encountered bad weather,
or a
road blocked by fallen rocks or bandits,
or
a ship that sailed off before they arrived or denied them passage for some
reason.
The
Spirit moves in mysterious ways,
but
the Spirit attempts to move us through ordinary ways as well.
Regardless
of how it played out, it was obvious that going west to Greece was not part of
Paul’s vision for the newly forming church.
Maybe
he planned on getting there eventually but for now it was not on his itinerary.
Perhaps
he thought the closer he moved towards Rome the more resistance he would face
from government authorities, and the less open people might be to embracing the
teachings of a middle-eastern Jewish Messiah.
At
this point, Paul was nearly 14 years into his missionary journeys.
The
wide-eyed openness to the Spirit that he’d experienced on the road to Damascus
had been replaced by the strategic plan of the “mission” - and the day to day
tasks of establishing and sustaining multiple Christian communities.
Like
our New World settlers, Paul’s vision began to shift from the distant shores to
the road just in front of him.
He
was already starting to accumulate letters from the churches he and his
followers had founded – letters complaining about unfaithful members,
dwindling
attendance as false prophets drew people away,
and
infighting between members as they argued over whose gifts were more valuable, who
deserved a more prominent seat at the table,
and
who was not contributing their fair share to the common pool to fund the
church’s mission. (I'm sure none of this sounds familiar)
Paul
may have looked to his immediate east in the hope that he’d find fertile ground
for new Christian communities, and new energy, new resources, and new converts and
leaders to help grow the church.
But
little did Paul know, that Lydia was the one he was looking for.
After
being thwarted twice, Paul heeds the Spirit’s call and heads west.
In
Philippi, he stops by the riverside to tell the women gathered there about the
God he loves and the community he’s building, and Lydia is there to listen.
She’s
buying what he’s selling, because her heart has already been opened to God.
As
a pagan, she has only a passing familiarity with the stories of Abraham and
Moses and the new prophet, Jesus, but she is eager to hear more.
She
asks to be baptized – to become a member of Christ’s community.
She
invites Paul and his fellow travelers into her home – providing a space for
them to worship and experience fellowship.
As
the head of her household and as a business woman with the means to support
herself, she likely gave generously to Paul’s mission and the new church they
would build in Philippi.
Lydia
is the poster child for the “church growth” movement.
She’s
faith-full, passionate, and generous.
She
hears one sermon by Paul and she’s ready to sign the membership book, fill out
a pledge card, and join the Fellowship Committee, the Trustees and the
Diaconate.
What
church today wouldn’t love to have Lydia?
But
what we should take note of is that Lydia didn’t come to Paul.
Paul
came to Lydia.
He
met her where she was.
On
the bank of the river in Philippi.
As
a seeker who was unfamiliar with church language and church ways.
As
one who was longing to hear the message of God’s unconditional love, and who
longed to be part of a community that expressed that love in the world.
Paul
could have easily stayed in Asia Minor working with the churches he’d already
established, and fretting over how to pay the bills and how to keep the flock
from wandering, but he left that for others to do.
Instead
he broadened his vision, and traveled into uncharted waters.
In
the church today we often talk about our
vision.
Our
vision of our mission in the world.
Our
vision of the future of the church in general and our church in particular.
Our
vision of who and what it is God is calling us to be.
In
our plan to restructure our church governance here in Amherst,
we
were intentional about including a standing group of people who will be charged
with discerning and overseeing the vision of our gathered body.
The
hope is that this aptly named “Vision” group will keep us on course and focused
– so all that we do as faith community – from worship to fellowship to outreach
to caring for our building – is congruent with our larger goal of serving God
to the best of our abilities, now and in the future.
We may
still embrace the vision our churches once had of packed pews on Sunday morning
and overflowing Sunday School classes,
even
if this image is slowly fading into the distance in the rearview mirror,
but
despite our changing culture, and the changing church,
the
larger vision of serving God in the world remains.
As
long as we have people living on the streets,
children
going to bed hungry at night,
refugees
fleeing violence and oppression,
youth
being thrown out of their homes because they’re gay or transgender.
As
long as we have religious extremists who kill in the name of God,
and
politicians who talk more about building walls than building bridges,
the
need for us to be the church in the world remains as strong as ever.
Our
vision
is to be a channel for God’s love, compassion, and grace.
Like
the New World settlers, and the apostle Paul long before them,
we’re
called to broaden our vision beyond what we see right in front of us.
To
not focus on the empty pews in our sanctuaries and instead shift our view to
the needs of those in our wider communities and those who reside on distant
shores.
We
may be looking for Lydia.
So
we can bring her the love of God and add her passion and energy to our own.
But
if we want to find her – and I fully believe that we will –
We
need to follow where the Spirit leads - and meet her where she is.
Thanks be to God and Amen.
