 Dr. Richard Cheatham |
Echoes
From the Past
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I was serving my first student church in Napoleon, Michigan. It was a quiet Saturday morning, when the phone rang and one of the young girls of the congregation asked for me. She was a lovely, fragile young lady, about eighteen or nineteen years of age. “Rev. Cheatham,” she said, (that’s what I was called back then) “ I need your help.” She went on to explain that her father had pushed his 45 automatic service pistol into her stomach and said: “I probably ought to shoot us both and just end it.” Then he went into the kitchen and sat at the table holding his gun, trying to decide what to do. I gave Diane a special hug and went to their house where I found the father, still in the kitchen, gun in hand. I sat down across from him. He placed the pistol on the table, and began to tell his story. He had been a master sergeant for an intelligence unit in the Pacific theater of operations during World War II. It was his task to select the two men who would hit the beaches in the first wave of every island invasion landing. They were always killed. He repeatedly tried to pass the job to his unit commander, but it was always passed back to him. So before every landing, he had to select two men he knew would be killed. He managed to return from the war without any physical wounds. However, the damage to his soul was enormous. His echoes from the past informed him that he should not be alive, and that he was unworthy of anyone’s love. We got him through that day, and back on track – at least for the short term. I realized that his daughter also had echoes from the past which gave her spirits of infirmity, severely weakening and limiting her life. Her father had been divorced five times. Her mother, who obviously had spirits of infirmity working within her, had also been divorced numerous times. This lovely young girl had bounced back and forth between whomever’s marriage was in tact at the time. Her echoes told her that no relationships last, and when they went bad she should run for safety. Eventually she met a young man who understood and cared for her, and they decided to marry. I warned her of the echoes and infirming spirits, but she said that she could never leave this young loving husband of hers. However, when their relationship fell into a valley (all relationships have peaks and valleys)….she fled. She eventually returned, and began to erase those old messages and replace them with affirming ones. Echoes from the past can produce spirits of infirmity which limit our lives and make us far less than God would have us become. Steve Wende, the senior minister in San Antonio where I spend my Texas time, told of a Canadian clergyman who announced one Sunday that for forty-five years he believed that he worshipped Jesus Christ. Now he realized that he was worshipping something else. For him it was a god, made up of two words: “Measure Up.” Most of what he accomplished during his years of ministry were not actually for the benefit of the Kingdom, or in obedience to Jesus Christ. They were unconscious attempts to “Measure Up” to the standards set by others, or arbitrarily imposed by himself. When I consider that the most researched part of our conference journal is the statistical section, I might believe this Canadian clergyperson is not alone. Many feel the need to see how we “Measure Up” with our peers. Is my church as large? As successful? Is my salary as high? How does my building stack up to theirs? How about the attendance? I would venture that it is not only clergy who suffer this malady. I imagine that most decisions concerning profession, expenditures, housing and general life activities stem from the need to “Measure Up.” Is my house as nice as others? Are my clothes as good? How about my car?…and so it goes. Perhaps one explanation for the 696 raceway is this competitive need to measure up…and not be passed by others. The irony is that this need may drive one to succeed professionally, but does not allow one to relax and enjoy the success earned. You must measure up tomorrow, and the tomorrow after that. You simply cannot lean back and enjoy the fruits of your labors. When I began to consider the echoes from the past which generate spirits of infirmity, I see an endless number. Let me give you some more: Whenever we sing hymns, I look out into the congregation and always see those whose lips are not moving, and some with pained expressions on their faces. These unmoving lips and pained expressions belong to people whose echoes tell them they cannot sing (or perhaps with some men, that singing is sissy stuff.) Long ago when they began to sing, someone told them they could not. Because of that, they simply cannot enter fully into all the joy of worship. When they first began to walk, they did not do well. When they first began to talk they did not do well either, but no one told them. So, not knowing they could not, they learned to walk and speak. Practically anyone who can speak can learn to sing, if they practice and are helped. There are those who cannot draw, cannot dance, cannot do something, simply because someone’s negative comments placed a spirit of infirmity in their souls. I relate to that issue in a couple of ways. I have a daughter who enjoyed singing when she was little, up until the moment when her singing teacher at school told her she could not sing well. Now she no longer sings. I now realize that when I was a child, I sang in the cracks, rarely on pitch. No one told me I was bad. I now understand why the director of the children’s choir at church had tears in her eyes when I showed up. However, she never said anything destructive to me. Neither did my mother. She just let me sing around the house, hoping and praying my ear would improve. As a result, I eventually learned, and it adds a wonderful dimension of joy to my life. On the other hand, I did receive a spirit of infirmity while growing up. As a child I was determined to learn to play the clarinet. I practiced hours every day, and studied from one of the finest clarinetists in the country. When I was in the ninth grade, I played first chair solo in the Grosse Pointe High School band. The next year I was first chair solo in the all-state band. I should have known I played reasonably well. However, my instructor probably felt that I needed to be prodded to not become complacent. This is the message he repeatedly gave to me. He was Italian, so I will say it as I continued to hear it: “Dick-a my boy, you one-a nice-a fella, but you no can-a play the clarinet.” For years, performing was painful for me. In spite of what anyone else said to affirm me, this message from the one who counted most caused me to believe I was always being judged. If anyone really knew music, they would know I was not very good. It took many years to get over that. First I erased the old message. That can never be done completely. I did it in part by reinterpreting it – understanding what was said, and why it was said. Then I covered it over with the positive affirmations I received. Finally, I was able to enjoy playing the music I worked so hard to create. I have found that a good source of the positive affirmations is Scripture. I believe Scripture is divinely inspired, and when people read it faithfully they can hear the word of God speaking through the words of Scripture. So here are some affirming words from Scripture for you. They are words which will override the destructive echoes from the past which have given you spirits of infirmity. The touchstone of my life is Romans 8:28. “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose.” All situations have a way of deteriorating. Things can go bad. Like you, I have been given enough negative messages to justify wallowing in self-pity, blaming others, or waiting to be rescued. However, this passage overrides the negative with the spirit of power and love and self-discipline, of which II Timothy speaks. I’ve learned to couple it with Matthew 7:7. “Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you.” I have also learned that God does not always give me what I ask for, but what I need at that moment. I do not always receive that which I seek, but – again – God provides what I require for the occasion. And while I may be knocking fervently on the wrong door, the right one opens if I take the time to look. God does not leave us in the valleys. Knowing this has changed my life. I no longer believe there are dead ends – anywhere – even when we take our last breath. Back in the 60s, a survey was made of people living in retirement villages and nursing homes. It revealed that elderly Christians were more afraid of death than non-Christians. It seems they were overly concerned with the awaiting judgment. In far too many instances, the Good News of Jesus Christ was distorted into bad news by broken people in a broken society who were guided by the spirits of infirmity rather than the Spirit of God. They may have been well- intentioned, but they were misguided. Let me tell you at this moment that a prevailing understanding of sin as a sort of virus which permeates the soul, was never a part of the teachings of Jesus. The word “sin,” as we now understand it, never appeared in Scripture. What we translate as “sin” is a word which literally means “to fall short,” or “to miss the mark.” Another word means “to stray” or “to err.” As fallible humans we miss the mark and we err with regularity, and it bothers us. When Jesus met people in need, he often greeted them with: “Your failings are forgiven.” Part of the Good News was that these failing should not be a burden which weighs heavily on our souls and removes the joys of living and makes us fearful of God’s judgment. So here is the passage to override those messages. It comes from one who experienced the reality of what he said: Paul of Tarsus. He writes in II Corinthians 5: 17-20: “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation. The old has passed away and the new has come. All this is from God who was in Christ reconciling us to himself, not counting our failings against us but entrusting us with the message of reconciliation.” Paul was transformed from an angry bigot full of himself to an apostle who wrote one of the most beautiful love passages you will ever read (I Corinthians 13). This happened when he turned from the messages of the world and embraced Jesus Christ. Still, there are those of you who will say: “I don’t really belong among God’s people. If you knew me – really knew me – you would know that is true.” To this Paul says (in Ephesians 2:19): “You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with God’s people. You are a member of God’s household.” Peter adds (1 Peter 2:10): “Once you were no people (you were nobody). Now you are God’s people. Once you were without mercy. Now you have received mercy.” Paul says the moment you turn to God in faith, you become part of God’s people. The past is behind you. You are a new creation. Incidentally, let me give you another echo from the past that generates a spirit of infirmity. We all have been told this at some time in our lives: “What will other people think?” If you want to strap your soul and kill your creativity, let that one take control of you. You will never be able to think in terms of God’s will for you. What other people say and think will dominate your life. Without a show of hands, how many of you wore nice, clean underwear…just in case a truck hits you? If you are to receive God’s Spirit of freedom and empowerment, you finally have to become free of those echoes. You also need to let go of those burdens caused by past mistakes and misdeeds. Take them to God-in-Christ in prayer. Share them, and leave them. For some this may be easy; but for others, it is nearly impossible. So many of us men have been told: “Do not show your weakness.” “You can do it by yourself.” “You don’t need help.” This is one reason men resist going to a counselor. (“I can ruin my marriage or go nuts without anyone else’s help.”) I see so many people with heavy burdens, who just cannot let them go. Some are obviously weighed down. Others hide it well, but still bear the weight within themselves. How does the song go? “Oh what peace we often forfeit. Oh what needless pain we bear. (Sing it with me – loudly!) All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.” Jesus said (Matthew 11:28-30): “Come to me you who are weary and heavily burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find your rest. For my yoke fits easy and my burden is light.” Let it go. Let it go, and allow the spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline to enter your life. In my first church, a young high school senior named Alan approached me one evening and asked me if I really believed what I said in the morning’s sermon. I assured him if I said it I meant it. It was a sermon on the order of today’s in which I had said one could do most anything one really wanted to do. Alan’s older brother was academically gifted. Alan was bright but not able to compete in that area, so he staked out athletics for his arena. His counselor told him he was not college material. Alan was asking me if he could make it in college. I paraphrased Philippians 4:13 to him: “You can do all things through the one who empowers you.” Then I added: “Work as hard on your studies as you do on your jump shot.” (I later learned that his counselor was a high school drop- out.) Alan made the honor roll his last semester. Then he went on to graduate from Adrian College. That was the last I heard of him for years. Then one day a young lady in my church heard his name, and told us he was her high school principal. She added that he was terrific. I would venture that he never placed a spirit of infirmity in any of his students. What Alan discovered was the truth of Paul’s statement, that anyone who is in Christ is a new creation. The old has passed and the new has come. He could, in fact, do anything through the one who empowers him. If
you don’t get anything else out of this sermon, learn this
passage from Philippians. “I can do all things through the
one who empowers me.” Say it with me. “I can do all things through the one who empowers me!” By God you can! * * * * * It seems appropriate to conclude this service with a Benediction from Ephesians 3:20: “Now unto him who is able to accomplish exceedingly more than you can ask or imagine through the power at work within you, to God be all the glory in the church, and in Christ Jesus, through all generations, forever and forever." Amen. Additional Scripture references:
My thanks to Dr. Steve Wende of the University United Methodist Church in San Antonio, Texas, whose sermon both inspired and served as the seed for this message.
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