Sermon

for St. Alban’s

July 15, 2007

 

READINGS

 

Proverbs 23:29-35

Psalms 51:1-17

Galatians 5:16-25

Matthew 6:25-34

 

 

There is nothing new under the sun.  In the reading from Proverbs, Solomon wrote the perfect description of an alcoholic over 3000 years ago.  “Who has woe?  Who has sorrow?  Those who linger late over wine.”  Those who “seek another drink” as soon as they awake.  Mankind has struggled with these problems since we first crushed grapes.  Depending on whose statistics you use, the percentage of people with drug and alcohol problems ranges from 7% to 12% of the population.  At least 1/3rd of American households are directly affected by a family member with a problem.

 

But today, I’d like you to consider the idea that maybe all of us struggle with addictions.  Gerald May wrote a wonderful book called “Addiction and Grace”.  He said that “to be alive is to be addicted”, and that an addiction is any habitual behavior that interferes with our relationship with God.  In his letter to the Galatians, Paul calls them ‘works of the flesh’.  Drunkenness is just one item on a laundry list that includes enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, and envy.  All of us are prey to problems such as these.  All of us let things come between us and God.  But we all have a common spiritual solution for the behaviors that cause us problems.  I have yet to find in the Bible where God says “Here is the solution for alcoholics, and here is the solution for college professors, and here is the solution for students. 

 

Have you ever said, “That’s just the way I am?”  It doesn’t have to be about one of the things on Paul’s list.  Maybe it was about being impatient, or being judgmental, or being late for appointments.   All of us struggle with the flesh.  As Paul says in Romans, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”  I believe that I was born an alcoholic.  It would be easy for me to say “That’s just the way I am”.  But if I do that - whether it’s about my alcoholism or any other character defect - then I am denying God’s transforming power.  I’m saying there is something God cannot deal with.  What I’m actually saying is that I’m not willing to let God change some part of my life.  There is something that I still won’t let go of.  These are the things that come between me and God.

 

When someone else has said “That’s just the way I am”, have you ever said “That’s OK.  I understand”?  Most of us don’t want to confront bad behaviors – it’s uncomfortable for us.  But are you really doing the other person a favor when you respond like that?  Are you not enabling bad behavior whether it’s something relatively trivial like impatience or very serious like addiction?  I know that for me, pain was a great motivator.  It was only when my behavior was not condoned or enabled, and when I began to have physical, personal, and professional consequences that I became willing to say “OK, I give up.  My way didn’t work.  Have it your way.”  I am standing here alive and sober only because of God’s grace.  “Love covers a multitude of sins”, and there is nothing that God can’t fix if we’re willing to let Him. 

 

We have great examples of this in some of the people considered heroes of the Bible.  David wrote Psalm 51 after Nathan came to rebuke him about Bathsheba.  Through Nathan God told David that “I saved you from Saul.  I made you king.  I gave you his palace, his wealth, and his wives.  If that was not enough, I would have given you even more if you had just asked.  But you didn’t ask.  You sent Uriah to the front lines to be killed in battle with the Ammonites so you could steal his wife. You wanted to do things your way, and there will be consequences.”  David committed adultery and murder – not exactly a perfect, virtuous, righteous life.  When we go after what we want, when we want it without considering God, then there will be consequences.  Once again, these are the things that interfere with our relationship with God. 

 

The marvelous news in all this is that God can do wonderful things with flawed people – even alcoholics and addicts.  David repented and once again became known as ‘a man after God’s own heart’.  If you look at other prominent men in the Bible such as Abraham, or Lot, or Peter, or Paul, you see men with serious character flaws.  Peter publicly denied Jesus three times.  Jesus said earlier in the gospel that “whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.”  You would think that after denying Jesus publicly that Peter would be down for the count, yet he became the rock on which our church was built.  Paul persecuted and killed Christians.  He was present when Stephen, the first Christian martyr, was stoned to death; yet he became the apostle to the Gentiles and the most prolific contributor to the New Testament.  When we become willing to change, when we get out of the way and let God direct us, miraculous things can happen.

 

How do we get out of the way?  How do we deal with the works of the flesh?  If you look at Psalm 51, David gives us a prescription for dealing with the things that come between us and God.  He recognized that he needed God’s grace and mercy.  He acknowledged his transgressions and asked God to cleanse him.  He took joy in his salvation and carried the message of God’s love to others.  He made ‘the sacrifice of a broken spirit’.  “A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”  In the Beatitudes, Jesus said “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  Alcoholics and addicts have to ‘hit bottom’ to begin their recovery process.  But all of us must learn from David and acknowledge our dependence upon God and that our own will and resources are insufficient to meet all the trials that life will surely bring us.  We must all become poor in spirit.  An inmate at Angola summed it up when he said “Sometimes you don’t realize that God is all you need until God is all you have.”

 

Paul doesn’t just give us a list of the ‘works of the flesh’, he also gives us the fruit of the Spirit to compare it with.  The fruit of the Sprit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  I constantly need to examine myself to see which list applies at the moment because it’s so easy to get caught up in all the worldly clamors going on around us.  It’s easy to worry about the job title and salary or the next promotion or the new clothes or the new house and car.  It’s easy to worry about appearances and what others will think.  Worries also interfere with our relationship with God.  But Jesus wants us to keep things in perspective.  I suspect that many of you have worries on your mind this morning.  But I will bet that most of you can’t tell me what you were worried about on July 15, 2006.

 

Jesus does not want us to worry about our lives.  In the passage from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reminds us that life is more than just earthly, material ‘stuff’ – more than what we will eat, or drink, or wear.  He reminds us that we are the crown of God’s creation.  If God takes such loving care of the birds and the fields, will He not take care of us?  This does not mean that I’m going home and waiting for God to fix supper tonight.  It does not mean that we don’t make prudent plans for our future.  But it does mean that we are to keep our priorities straight.

 

How do we keep our priorities straight?  We have a loving God who has a plan for each of our lives.  I suspect that His plan is a lot better than anything I can come up with on my own.  But how do I follow that plan.  Jesus tells us that it comes down to keeping ‘first things first’.  We are to “strive first for the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then all these other things will be given to us as well.”  God wants to bless us.  He wants us to live abundantly.  But first, we must seek Him and learn to do His will.  When the 12 Step recovery programs say “first things first”, it came from this lesson.  Jesus has already told us not to worry.  He asks the question “can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?”  I suspect that worrying takes hours from our lives.  He tells us even further “do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own.  Today’s trouble is enough for today.”  This passage gave the 12 Step programs the saying “One day at a time”, but it’s a message for all of us.

 

I have been privileged to represent St. Alban’s on the church’s Addictions Recovery Ministry.  I want to thank Drew for the support he has given me.  Addiction is often the ‘elephant in the living room’.  There is still a tremendous stigma associated with alcoholism and addiction.  We don’t want to look at it – especially if it’s a close friend or loved one.  We don’t like to talk about it.  Many people affected do not want to go to therapists or employee assistance programs or 12 Step meetings.  Addiction is a disease of denial and isolation – for the victim and for their families.  But I want you to know that there is an avenue of help within the church.  If you or a loved one is struggling with an addiction problem, the Recovery Ministry is available.  The Recovery Ministry is not a 12 Step program, but we work with them.  The Recovery Ministry is not a group of doctors or therapists, but we can put you in touch with them.  The Recovery Ministry does not run any halfway houses, but we know the people who do.  Mostly though, we are available to talk.  The Recovery ministry celebrates life in recovery with special meetings at churches around the diocese during the year.  We also do three retreats during the year – a men’s retreat, a women’s retreat, and a mixed retreat.  The mixed weekend is coming up August 3-5 at the Solomon Episcopal Conference Center in Robert.  Anyone who is in recovery from any addiction, any friends of people in recovery, and anyone who just wants to learn more about addiction and recovery is welcome.  There are brochures for the weekend on the table outside the library, and I am always available to answer any questions.

 

All of us are prey to works of the flesh.  All of us can have addictive behaviors that interfere with our relationship with God.  Yet all of us have access to the same spiritual solution.  All of us can be transformed by God’s mercy and grace.  Alcoholics just need a little extra help to realize it.  Our problems are as old as man.  Our solution is as old as our relationship with God:

-          You shall love the Lord your God with all you heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength

-          And you shall love your neighbor as yourself

-          Keep first things first

-          Live one day at a time

Through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

 

Amen.