08/24/2008 THE BEST LAID PLANS
THE BEST LAID PLANS
Sermon # 10 in the “First Families. Families First.” Series
Seated in the restaurant at the table right next to us, sat a husband & wife. When the food arrived, the man respectfully lifted his baseball cap about four inches from his head as he prayed over their meal. It was rather humorous to see him ahold of the hat, perched like a halo, while offering grace.
His spouse wore a Prayer of Jabez tee shirt.
Are you familiar the Prayer of Jabez? I wouldn’t expect most folks are. Buried among nine chapters of genealogies & lists filled with impossible-to-pronounce names, the one-verse prayer is easy to miss. This short petition in 1st Chronicles 4:10 is uttered by a man named Jabez.
According to the New King James Version of the Bible, Jabez’s prayer to God goes like this: “Oh that you would bless me indeed & enlarge my territory, & that your hand would be with me, & that you would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!”
In 2000, pastor & author, Bruce Wilkinson, wrote a best-selling little book about that prayer. He encouraged his readers to pray it daily in order to be blest in their lives, just like Jabez. It is another example of American Christianity’s penchant for success & wealth, better known as the “prosperity gospel.” I knew a lot of persons who bought the book & prayed the prayer. They experienced mixed results, though record book sales surely blest the Rev. Wilkinson.
Anyway, back to the woman at the next table with the Prayer of Jabez screen-printed on the back of her shirt….
The lunch menu contained an array of options & dietary substitutes: hamburger, turkey burger, or veggie burger; salad or creamed soup; breaded curly fries with cheese or fresh fruit; ice tea, lemonade, or milkshake; sorbet or ice cream sundae. The woman opted for the decidedly unhealthier choice with each item, then added a Diet Coke.
“Hmm, she’s going to get her Jabez prayer answered,” I said to Deb.
“What do you mean?” Deb replied.
“If she keeps making all of those unhealthy selections, she’s sure going to get her territory enlarged in ways she didn’t expect, the Diet Coke notwithstanding!”
A great many things happened in our scripture lesson today that the Bible’s characters didn’t expect, either. Each time they had an opportunity to trust God, or devise a plan to do their own thing, they opted for the personal approach. They made bad choices, but because they knew God, they somehow expected that God would make it all right, just like the woman at the next table.
Our lesson deals with the same Bible family which
Let’s start with Esau. If you didn’t catch it, he has little regard for his family obligations. I say that because for bowl of stew his younger fraternal twin was cooking, he sells off to Jacob his leadership rights as the oldest son, as well as the double-portion of his inheritance. His actions not only discount mores & laws, but show him to be a complete dullard. Jacob must have been some cook! Esau marries outside of the traditional bounds, twice nonetheless, to women who aggravate his parents. These are not loving in-laws so much as spiteful outlaws. Despite the offensive actions, Esau’s magical thinking convinces him that tradition – the same traditions he’s disrespected -- will still, somehow, provide him with blessing. When that doesn’t happen, he offers us one of the most heart-rending cries (whines?) of despair in all of scripture.
Next is Jacob. He is, in a word, a scoundrel. He never directly talks with Esau. What a statement that silence makes! He connives & deliberately deceives by supplanting both his brother & accepted custom in order to gain status & riches for himself.
Then there’s Rebekah (whose brother is the despicable Laban that Pastor Nancy preached about; this stuff really does run in the family!). She flaunts the fact that she loves her son Jacob, more than Esau. Notice how she never speaks to Esau, either. It’s a misguided affection that not only fosters enmity between the boys, but leads to Jacob’s being mortally threatened by Esau. She bitterly exploits a natural sibling rivalry. “Gee, thanks, Mom!”
And, finally, Isaac, who comes off as being such a naïve dupe worthy of our sympathy, is actually as calculating as Rebekah, when you closely read the scriptures. He’s fully aware of what’s going on, playing off his legitimate handicaps to appear innocent. He pulled that act with King Abimelech in chapter 26, too. The ruse was exposed then, & he’s not fooling us now, either.
What I’m saying is that Jacob, Esau, Rebekah, & Isaac do not fill me with warm fuzzies. Speaking candidly, I don’t like these people. It’s the ancient version of All My Children ! Like many persons in our lives, Jacob’s family makes it difficult to love them, yet they remind us that because of the severely conflicted relationships, they need an extra dose of grace & love from us, balanced with injections of discerning wisdom, so we don’t get caught up in their sticky web of ill-conceived plans & damaged relationships.
The issue I want to explore today is not so much the provocative family intrigue, as much as the unrealistic expectations which Isaac & his family bring to life. What do I mean by that?
Well, this is a family where everyone has everything figured out & does things their way. They anticipate that life will go just as they expect, enduring a rude awakening to reality when things don’t go as they plan. Do you know anyone like this?
Esau discounts & disregards both law & tradition, but somehow still thinks that they will save him in the end. That’s unrealistic. Jacob depends on the imprudent, calculating influence of his mother. He knows it’s morally wrong, doesn’t acknowledge that reality, & consequently, gets himself into quite a mess. Rebekah proudly relies on her own carefully honed strengths & skillful control tactics that end up hurting both of her sons. Smart as she is, she foolishly fails to foresee the obviously risky realities born out by her deceit. Isaac, unable to perceive reality, plays dumb & gives lip service to God, but that’s about all. They all succeed in creating a reality for themselves that is not realistic for others, & certainly not the reality God desires.
Do we do these things? I’m not suggesting that we’re as conniving as Isaac’s family, but we succumb to unrealistic expectations. How so?
Think about the last big event in your life. Was it your smarts & education that pulled you through? Was it your finances or management skills that made the difference? Was it the assistance of a friend or colleague or team or some talented professional that helped you attain the goal? Where was God in all of this … really? Was God at the center, on the periphery, or unnecessary?
Our culture, our material resources, our success, our independent self-reliant natures, our teamwork ideologies have taught us to not need God. And, quite frankly, if the truth be told, lots of us do rather well without God: good families, good jobs & careers, good health, good medical care, sound pension plans, comfortable homes. What do we need God for? (This is why some persons need to be goaded into prayer, even as a last resort: because they don’t really believe that God has a key role. Having tried everything else & failed, though, they’ll give God a shot. Cynically speaking, what do they have to lose?)
Really, when life doesn’t go well, we think, it’s the economy that needs to turn around, or the doctors whose skills are the answer, or ourselves who just need to try harder & do better, or maybe just a little change in luck. Praying won’t really help, because it’s not about God. We’re convinced that we don’t really need God, but God wants us convinced that we do.
So, acknowledging that life is pretty darn good for many individuals without an intentional reliance on God, what are things like when God is asked to be present? What’s the situation when God is welcomed? How is life (even better) when God is placed at the center of our plans? What do things look like when we acknowledge our own failings or utter helplessness, in order to rely on no one or nothing, except God?
What’s the situation when God is welcomed? --- For weeks, our Tuesday morning men’s group had been praying, welcoming God’s blessings on the upcoming roofing project. Most of us know what skills Bob Vincent possesses when it comes to organizing & recruiting. He was already developing quite a crew of laborers to work on Dot Kuschel’s roof, when he received an invitation to a community sports league gathering. He decided that he didn’t want to go, that his week was already too busy. Minutes before the event was to begin, he thought about the friend from church who invited him & what a help he had been over the years. “Okay,” a worn out Bob thought to himself, “I’ll go.”
Once there, Bob ended up talking to a man, previously unknown to Bob, who was a roofing contractor. That man, Gary Volpe, is a Christian, who, when he heard about our church’s project, provided all sorts of material help & expertise. What are the chances? A few times it may be coincidence, but more than that & the laws of chance & probability point elsewhere. Bob recruited some superb help, but he was quick to note how he couldn’t take any credit for the meeting with Mr. Volpe which made the entire project run so much better & in record time. Ask God into your endeavors.
How is life even better when God is placed at the center? --- Three years ago, our Finance Committee put God at the center of the church’s annual stewardship campaign. God was present other years to be sure, but in 2005, God became the center-piece. The committee members decided to totally rely on God to provide. Every year we asked people to take a step in faith, now the men & women charged with organizing our finances were about to practice what they preached & take a faith step themselves. There would be no reviewing the individual financial commitments to determine how the budget should look. Whatever persons pledged was between them & God. The committee pledged not to know. It was not an easy decision, but a prayerful one. Phil & the group needed to put aside years of custom, common sense, & keen management skills by entrusting the process to God by trusting God in the process. It worked! We’ve closed each year since with record numbers.
What do things look like when we acknowledge our own failings or weakness before God? --- Rock bottom is not a place many of us get to or come to in life. We have so many blessings & things that assure & reassure us that we don’t often get to a place where we need to rely on God 100%.
Erin Corne was brand new to the congregation & early on, enrolled in the Disciple Bible Study. When you intentionally read God’s Word & let God speak to you through that ancient, inspired text, things happen in life. The Spirit began working on
Organizing a congregation to work with homeless families is a huge undertaking, but when you have no experience, don’t know many persons outside of your Bible study, & are simply scared of biting off too much…. What I’m saying is that
Getting persons to stay overnight was the toughest job, she was told. On the first week, someone signed up, offering to take every night for the entire month.
I think that one of the reasons persons don’t see God in their lives is that we don’t give God a chance to show himself faithful. We’re too self-sufficient (not in itself a bad thing, but not the best thing in this case), thus unintentionally pushing God out of the process. The danger is: if we don’t relate with God on the small things, when the big stuff happens, we’re out of practice & don’t’ quite have a place for God then, either.
We know that we can count on ourselves, our abilities, & one another to do rather well in life many days. Today, we have seen when God is openly welcomed, deliberately put at the center, & totally relied upon because of our lack of abilities, even good lives become better, enriched beyond measure for the glory of God. The best-laid plans are God’s.
In the Name…. Copyright 2008 by G.D. Knerr in