A Stewardship Sermon by Thomas R. Henry St. Pauls United Church of Christ, Chicago

September 25, 2005

Texts: Exodus 17:1-7 / Matthew 21: 28-31

Water. Who has a bottle of water with them today? I want you to show me. Lets hold up those water bottles!

Water. Dont leave home without it.

We dont just drink water anymore. We hydrate. And we are encouraged to do that more or less constantly. I know people who just have to hydrate right in the middle of conversations. And it is often a noisy action, a kind of sucking action, since we have to hydrate out of those little holes in the tops of the plastic bottles.

Water. Water with names. Like Evian and Perrier; Mountain Spring, Ice Mountain and Crystal Geyser. Names designed to conjure up images of refreshment, coolness, a peacefulness. Mine here is Safeway Select. Well, some of us buy in bulk from discount stores.. Bottled water. And water of life. The cases and cases of bottles and bottles of water became the water of life for the hurricane victims for whom there was and is water, water, everywhere, but not a drop to drink.

Water. Which sometimes comes with a destructive force. And sometimes with a high cost. With the devastation of the recent hurricanes, it seems kind of ironic that the scripture lesson assigned to this Sunday (assigned long, long ago) should be about water.

In our scripture lesson for today we catch up with the Hebrews out in the wilderness on an Exodus from slavery in Egypt to a Promised Land. A land, they were told, that was overflowing with milk and honey. But at the moment what they needed was water. We read:

…there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.”

…and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and

our children…? So, Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with these people?”

At the beginning of the Exodus from Egypt, these same people were filled with joy and excitement. Slavery was behind them. Freedom was ahead of them. But after years of wandering, they began wondering if they really could “get there from here.” The first blush of enthusiasm had passed long ago. They had needs and they wanted their needs met. And most certainly when one of those needs was for water, the situation became urgent. They had needs and the only one they could go to for meeting their needs was Moses. And the only one that Moses could go to was God: What am I going to do with these people?

Do you know, sometimes I ask the same question: What am I going to do with these people? What am I going to do with the needs of this church? What am I going to do with the needs of this neighborhood? What am I going to do with the needs of this city? With the needs of hurricane victims? With the needs of those who ring the doorbell of this church with tears in their eyes? What am I going to do with those who need jobs; with those who need comfort; with those seeking sanctuary and those whose safety is threatened; with those who are poor and with those who are poor in spirit?

What am I going to do with the children who need Christian education and nurture? What am I going to do with the shut-ins who need visits and the homeless who need shelter? With the kids who are growing up in this church and the young adults who are coming back to church? What am I going to do with these people?

And what am I going to do with this building? This building which always needs roofing and repairing; cleaning and tuckpointing? Tuckpointing. Do you know how many bricks there are and how much mortar there is in this building? What am I going to do with a pipe organ that costs over $1000 to be tuned. And what am I going to do with this vast space which needs to be air conditioned sometimes and heated other times? And what am I going to do with the people who are putting on their sweaters while others are fanning themselves? What am I going to do with these people? With so many needs?

What am I going to do? pleaded Moses to God. What are we going to do? pleads our church leadership as we come yet again to that time of year (in case you didnt already suspect), that time of year we call the stewardship campaign, the annual pledge drive. There are so many needs and so many people coming to St. Pauls Church asking and sometimes demanding, “Give us…”

Give us water to drink. Give us worship that inspires. Give us education in the Bible and in the Faith. Give us more options for worship and education. Give us a safe place for our children. Give us child care. Give us justice. Give us peace. Give us water to drink. The water of life.

In the wilderness, surrounded by thirsty people with needs and demands; with their legitimate, quite understandable, need for water, Moses had no where to go but to the Lord. He prayed, “What am I going to do…?” And his prayer was heard. God answered, “Go on ahead of the people (to the rock at Horeb)…take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile…strike the rock, and water will come out of it.”

Now, someone might ask why God doesnt act in such direct and miraculous ways anymore. Well, lets put our minds to work and take another look at this occurrence described in the book of Exodus. Imagine Moses praying to God: My God, what am I going to do with these people?! Then, after asking the question, Moses takes some time to listen. Some time for quiet reflection. Some time to let himself be inspired with some new insight. New insight which often comes only when we stop and listen; when we lower the volume on our own talking; when we pop a Pepcid AC for the acid reflux; when we breathe deep and let the panic subside. New insight that just might be the Spirit of God speaking to our spirits.

What if Moses got some new insight out there in the wilderness? Hum, hum, ponders Moses,.maybe there is an underground spring around here somewhere. Think about it that way. Think about your own lives and needs that way. God is still speaking. We just dont have time to listen. It may be that there is no such thing as an impossible situation. It just may be that we havent let ourselves be inspired with other possibilities.

In order for the miracle to happen, Moses had to go to the Lord. He had to listen and then he had to do something. He had to find the rock and he had to strike the rock. He couldnt just wait around and pray for rain. He had to find the rock.

We have to find the rock. As St. Pauls congregation, we have to find the resources to bring the water of life to the people who come to this church saying, “Give us..” Sometimes you and I are among those people. Sometimes it is you or me asking, seeking, pleading, needing. Sometimes we are Moses. But always, together, we are the rock. The rock from which the waters flow to those who thirst for justice and peace and to those who thirst for that which refreshes the soul.

We are the rock. The rock in the wilderness. And were about to be struck once again. We are about to be struck for a pledge. For a financial commitment to the ministries of St. Pauls United Church of Christ for another year. We are about to be struck for one million dollars. Thats what is needed. One million dollars from the 700+ households in this congregation. We need this from each other. Not from some anonymous “they”, but from each other. From each and every one of us.

Did you know that a non-giving Christian is a contradiction in terms?

Were not trying to get blood from a turnip, but water from a rock. You and I, we are the rock.

The people are calling out, “Give us water to drink.”

And we say, “What shall we do with these people?”

And God gives us insight.

And we are led us to the rock.

And the rock is us.

We strike the rock.

And we feel the blow.

But there is water.

Enough to satisfy the thirst.