Words that Build Up

Rev. Molly F. James, PhD

DFMS Noonday Prayer 

February 9, 2022

1 Kings 10:1-10; Psalm 37:1-7, 32-33, 41-42; Mark 7:14-23

May God's word be spoken, May God's Word be heard, and May that point us to the living Word who is Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 
‘Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.’*

And just in case we are not clear on that, Jesus goes on to offer a list: “For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly.”

Rather than focusing on the letter of laws about what someone could and could not eat, Jesus wants his followers to think about the bigger picture – to think about the message that is behind these laws.  To think about what it is that brings pain and defilement into our lives.  He turns the question of what one should eat on its head by focusing not on what goes into our mouths but on what comes out.  

There is a little rhyming saying I learned as a child, that I am sure many of you did as well.  “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”  That may sound like a harmless saying when we are little, and even in preschool, we likely already knew that it is not at all accurate.  Words can hurt.  Words can do a great deal of damage.  This is what Jesus is getting at in today's Gospel.  Being his follower is not only about what we do, about how we behave, about how we live our lives.  It is also very much about what we say.  What comes out of our mouths has the power to build up and the power to destroy.  

Words are essential to our Anglican identity.  We are people of the “books” – the Bible and the Prayer Book.  Think of the familiar words of favorite Bible passages, psalms and prayers.  The comfort and solace they can provide.  And the ways in which our faith is built up and stretched by a newly discovered passage or prayer.  Words play a very important role in our faith life.

Words are also a part of our identity as beings created in the image of God.  Think about the opening chapter of Genesis.  Creation happens through speaking.  “And God said, 'Let there be light . . .”  “And God said . . .”  Creation happens because of what God says.  Or think of the opening of the Gospel of John, “In the beginning was the WORD . . .”  Words are foundational to our identity as God's children.  They have tremendous creative power.  We know this first hand.  Think of the ways that stories you hear and ideas others shared, have opened new realities in your life.  A new business, a new relationship, a new project – they all begin with a conversation.  Great achievements owe their existence to conversations, to idea sharing, to encouraging words. 

They need not be long, eloquent addresses.  Simple sentences can mean a great deal.  “I love you.”  “I am proud of you.”  “I believe in you.”  Hearing these statements from someone we care about and respect can make all the difference in the world.  

Equally powerful are their negative counterparts.  “I hate you.”  “I am disappointed in you.”  “I can't trust you anymore.”  These simple sentences can do great damage.  They are the words that can break our hearts and deflate our spirits in an instant.

In today's Gospel, Jesus does not let us forget that we have the power to destroy.  Simple words can tear the fabric of a life.  We are called as his followers to avoid the temptation to sin with our words.  To avoid the temptation of power.  To avoid the temptation to bring another person down just because we can or just because we feel mad at the world. 

We are called to be a people who pay attention not only to what goes into our bodies, but also what comes out.  To be aware of the great power we possess as his followers, as children of God.  We have the power to build up.  To create.  As Jesus gained followers and spread his message, as he healed and taught with words, so too can we build up the kingdom of God with our words.  We can use our words to build each other up.  To counter the forces of evil in the world.  To repair and redeem broken relationships.  To share the Good News with those who are hungry to hear it. To remind people that they are beloved of God. 

To be a follower of Christ is to use our power for good.  It is to use our words to be a creative, uplifting presence in the world.  We are called to follow our Lord in the path of righteousness, to build up the kingdom of God with our actions, and our words.

AMEN. 

Chatting with God

Embed from Getty Images

Rev. Molly F. James, PhD
Chapel of our Lord, Episcopal Church Center
May 14, 2019
Acts 11:19-26; Psalm 87; John 10:22-30


May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our Strength and our Redeemer. Amen.

The people said to Jesus: “‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.’ “Tell us plainly.” Isn’t that the truth? Don’t we so often wish for that to be true? Couldn’t we just have a clear pronouncement from God? A clear revelation about what God thinks and what we should do in a given situation? Perhaps could we have a voice from the heavens or a letter that arrived in our mailbox? Actually, it’s the 21st century, perhaps God could just send us a text?

Wow. Wouldn’t that be nice? Wouldn’t it be great to have that sort of clarity whenever we need it. It would be like those chat windows that pop up when you are trying to make a customer service inquiry with a company, except it would be God, so you would get instantaneous help that actually answered your questions. No wait time. No long winded explanations. No please provide all the possible identifying information we might need to solve this problem. Just help and clarity.

The disciples must of had that, instant clarity and help. I mean there they were walking around with Jesus. They had the Lord himself. Right in front of them. They could talk to him. They could touch him.

But what does Jesus say to them, when they ask him to “Tell us plainly.” He said, ‘I have told you, and you do not believe.” Hmm. I wonder if that applies to us too?

“I have told you, and you do not believe.” I think that might very well apply to us. I know it applies to me. Jesus has told us. God has told us. In so many ways, we have been told who God is, and what God expects of us.

But just like St. Paul, we (individually and collectively as the whole of humanity) fall short again and again. We do those things which we know we ought not to do. We have our moments of thinking we have the answers or we are in control. Or we are just tired or short on patience, and so we seek what seems like the easier path.

Funny thing about that. Why is it that we are tempted to follow our own way? Or tempted by laziness or tempted to lash out at someone we love? We are tempted to do this, even when we know on some level that it is not the right thing to do?

For me, this cycle is most evident in parenting. Take the end of a long day when we are all hungry and tired and trying to get home to start dinner. One of our kids could ask a simple question or just be slow in getting their seat belt on. I snap an answer or a command. I am not being my best self. I know that. Pretty much as soon as the words are out of my mouth. But somehow it still happens.

But it does not always happen, and that is where the hope is. There are days when I can keep my voice even, and I am able to delve into their question or just wait while they struggle to get buckled. What is it that makes those days different?

I will offer my experience, in the hopes that it is something of value to you all as well, whether your moments of frustration come in parenting or some other facet of life.

I have noticed that I have more patience. I am more able to follow on the path that I know I should follow, the Way of Love. I am more able to be my best self, to live more fully into who God is calling me to be, when I am grounded. What does being grounded look like?

It looks like taking care of myself - body, mind, and spirit. It means getting enough sleep and exercise. It means eating foods that taste good and are good for me. It means having regular time for worship and prayer. It means have sabbath time. Now that does not always mean a whole 24 hours “off” in a week. It might. Or it might just mean that I take a day in which I do the tasks I have to accomplish at a less hurried rate, with a sabbath mindset. And it means actually taking vacation with my family. It also means making use of the myriad of opportunities we have to learn something new. Finally, it means making sure I am making good use of the support system I have developed. Regular time for in depth conversation with my husband, so that we talk about more than all the logistics of family life for the next. Time with my therapist, my spiritual director and an invaluable group of colleagues with whom there is a covenant that we will support each other and tell each other the truth (even when it is hard) for the rest of our lives.

So that is my list of what keeps me healthy, grounded, filled up, so that I can live more fully into who God is calling me to be. So that I can at least more often avoid the temptation to ignore what Jesus has told us about who is and how we are supposed to live. If you have not made that list for yourself recently, I would encourage you to do so. And I would encourage you to make a habit of checking in on it every few months. Indeed, Jesus has told us and shown us our Way. The challenge is in having the self-discipline and the capacity to follow it. The good news is, Jesus is also really clear that we are not meant to do it alone. AMEN.