{"id":934,"date":"2019-06-23T16:39:50","date_gmt":"2019-06-23T16:39:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/2019\/06\/23\/sheer-silence-based-on-1-kings-191-15a\/"},"modified":"2020-02-15T18:19:55","modified_gmt":"2020-02-15T18:19:55","slug":"sheer-silence-based-on-1-kings-191-15a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/2019\/06\/23\/sheer-silence-based-on-1-kings-191-15a\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cSheer Silence\u201d\tbased on 1 Kings 19:1-15a"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n

Elijah
\nhad it rough. \u00a0In his time, the people were uncertain about their
\nloyalties. \u00a0Their shared story of being led out of bondage in Egypt
\nand to freedom in their own land by a God who cared about them and
\nhow they treated each other… wasn’t primary anymore. \u00a0Their current
\nking was worshiping another gods. \u00a0Elijah was a prophet for YHWH,
\ncalled to speak out for justice, and for YHWH-God’s vision of people
\ntreating each other well and creating a society where everyone could
\nsurvive AND thrive.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The
\nother gods weren’t into creating fair and equitable societies. \u00a0They
\nwere into power, and control, hierarchy, and wealth \u2013 and most of
\nall they were into themselves. \u00a0They were easier to worship because
\nthere felt like a direct correlation between sacrifices to those gods
\nand personal success. \u00a0(Aka, the prosperity gospel isn’t new.)<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Worshiping
\nthe God of our tradition isn’t always easy, and Elijah was proof of
\nthat. \u00a0He was a prophet when neither the power structure nor the
\npeople tended to want to hear him. \u00a0He was asked to bring bad news,
\ntime and time again, and it was NOT appreciated. \u00a0For most of his
\nlife he is presented as a very lonely creature. \u00a0He is said to have a
\nservant, but he seems to be on his own for the most part. \u00a0In the
\npreceding story he claimed a great victory for God over the other
\ngods \u00a0– \u00a0in a way I find utterly horrific \u2013 and gained the
\nattention of some of the people in doing so. He also upset the king
\nand queen, and was running away, certain of his impending death for
\nwhat he’d done, on the basis that the queen said she was going to
\nhave him killed.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

He
\nran, by himself, into the desert. \u00a0It seems to me that he decided it
\nwas better to control his own death than be tortured and shamed as he
\ndied. \u00a0Running into the desert was claiming the right to at least die
\nalone. \u00a0The Bible, remember, thinks of the desert wilderness as a
\nplace where there is not enough to survive without God’s help.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I
\nmention this, because I think there are a lot of deserts out there
\n\u2013we have deserts of loneliness, we have deserts of grief, and
\ndeserts of exhaustion, deserts of confusion, and deserts of
\nhopelessness, deserts of meaning, and deserts of beauty. \u00a0Research
\nsays 45% of people in the US don’t have enough money for rent and
\nfood1<\/sup><\/a>,
\nso there are a lot of people dealing with exactly the kind of deserts
\nthat the Bible is talking about, no metaphor needed. \u00a0However, the
\nrest of the deserts also exist, both for people with enough money for
\nfood and rent, and for those without. \u00a0For those of us who believe
\nthat ALL people are beloved children of God, and who thus want to
\nwork for a world where justice rolls down like waters, and mercy like
\nan every flowing stream, our country can feel like one big desert
\nof injustice and mercilessness.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Elijah
\ngoes off into the desert by himself, too exhausted and scared and run
\ndown to do anything but find a broom tree to lie under. \u00a0A broom tree
\nis a little desert shrub. \u00a0A devotional about broom trees says \u201cIts
\ndeep roots draw in the moisture of land that is otherwise barren.
\n…In the desert, water is invisible. It lies hidden beneath the
\nsurface and is often too deep to reach on our own. But water
\nis there and the roots of a broom tree prove its existence. In the
\nsame way, hope can be discovered even in the deepest moments of human
\nsuffering.\u201d2<\/sup><\/a>
\n Hagar also lay down under a broom tree to await oncoming death.
\nHagar, too, was taken care of by God. \u00a0It seems that in the Bible
\nutter despair and hopelessness happen in the desert \u2013 and because
\nthe desert is so HOT and the sun is so unyielding, the little shade
\nthat the broom tree offers ends up being the place that people lie
\ndown to give up their fight and let the despair win.<\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n

And,
\nin the Bible, that means that the broom tree, like the desert, is
\nwhere God steps in. \u00a0For Hagar, that meant helping her see the well
\nthat was going to sustain her life. \u00a0For Elijah, it is a bit more
\ncomplicated. \u00a0He lies down under the broom tree to give up, and the
\nfirst thing that happens is \u2026 he falls asleep. \u00a0He stops fighting.
\nHe lets the exhaustion win.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

And
\nthen, a messenger of God (I’d lean towards assuming a human one, but
\nthat’s just me), delivers food and water \u2013 good food and water from
\nwhat I can tell \u2013 and wakes him up to eat it. \u00a0And then get gets to
\ngo back to sleep.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I
\nlike this part. \u00a0I may like this part best.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I
\nlike that Elijah doesn’t have to do anything more. \u00a0He sleeps, he
\neats and drinks, and he goes immediately back to sleep. \u00a0Sometimes,
\nfriends, that’s all we have left when we’ve given our all to the work
\nof kindom building, and we have NOTHING left. \u00a0Sometimes finding food
\nand drink is too much, and someone has to help us, and even when they
\ndo, all we can do afterwards is go back to sleep. \u00a0This is also
\nlovely encouragement for the people who tend to be messengers of God
\nwho show up with food and drink. \u00a0The prophet may get a lot of glory,
\nbut the prophet wouldn’t make it without those others who prop them
\nup.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Even
\nElijah, even the one known for standing alone in his generation, even
\nhe didn’t do it himself. \u00a0The food and water to sustain his life came
\nfrom outside his capacities. \u00a0They were gifts to support him. \u00a0The
\nwork of building the kindom takes many people doing their part, never
\njust one standing alone. \u00a0In this church, we do some of those
\n\u201cmessenger under a broom tree\u201d type ministries. \u00a0We support the
\npeople of God by making the journey a touch easier, by seeing what is
\nneeded and offering it. \u00a0Our breakfast is food and drink in some
\npeople’s desert. \u00a0Sustain is too. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

This
\npassage is good to remember and see the valuable work of those who
\nare \u201cmessengers of God\u201d with hidden, quiet support. \u00a0 \u00a0I think is
\nalso honest about the times when life has drained EVERYTHING we have
\nfrom us, and that sometimes in life we sit under a broom tree without
\nany intention to ever get up again. \u00a0At those times, we don’t even
\nhave a choice. \u00a0We can’t do any more.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

And,
\nfriends, I think that’s OK. \u00a0I think we’re allowed to be exhausted,
\ndrained, horrified, and in despair. \u00a0Elijah is a pretty deal in the
\nBible, and he gets just sleep under a broom tree! \u00a0I don’t want to
\nrush out from under this broom tree. \u00a0In the stories of the Bible,
\nsitting under them in despair is honest, and real. \u00a0It is a
\nreflection of what has happened, and what is happening, and that
\nthere is no where else to turn.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

AND
\nYET, God is the one who makes a way out of no-way. \u00a0God lets Elijah
\nsleep under the broom tree, BUT God also makes sure that Elijah gets
\nthe sustenance he needs for the next part of the journey. \u00a0I guess
\nthat means we get to sit under broom trees, we get to recover, we get
\nto be aimless, we get to rest and rebuild strength, but \u2026 it is
\nalways a stop along the journey and never the journey’s end.
\nHowever, before anyone feels rushed out of their broom tree offering
\nshade in the desert, let’s note that he got to sleep, eat, drink, and
\nsleep again and eat again and drink again. \u00a0He got rebuilt before he
\nhad to leave. \u00a0If you aren’t rebuilt yet, I’m not sure you have to
\nleave yet.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

But,
\nleave the liminal space of the broom tree of hopelessness, we will.
\nGod lets us be there, but not stay there. \u00a0Elijah gets awoken a
\nsecond time by a messenger, who has left food and drink again, and
\nthen he gets kicked out from under the broom tree. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

It
\nseems to work for him. \u00a0On that rest, recovery, and sustenance, he is
\nable to complete his journey. \u00a0His journey is to Mount Sinai, where
\nMoses got the commandments from God. \u00a0Like Moses before him, Elijah
\nhas the chance to know God more deeply there. \u00a0The story makes space
\nfor Elijah to name his grievance and be heard, “I have been very
\nzealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have
\nforsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your
\nprophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my
\nlife, to take it away.” (verse 10). \u00a0And then and there, from a
\ncave on mountain far from home, Elijah experiences God.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The
\nstory takes the time to clarify who God is and is not. \u00a0God is not in
\nthe destruction, or the fear, or even the awe. \u00a0God is not in the
\nloud and extraordinary. \u00a0Instead, God is in the regular, the every
\nday, the silence. \u00a0There was probably silence under the broom tree,
\nbut it seems Elijah needed the journey before he could hear its
\nsignificance. \u00a0So, Elijah emerges from the cave to stand in the midst
\nof sheer silence. \u00a0Teachers of Centering Prayer call silence \u201cGod’s
\nfirst language.\u201d \u00a0In the midst of the presence of the Divine,
\nElijah is again given the space to name his grievance and his grief.
\nGod, who is in the silence, LISTENS to the one who has been
\nexhausted.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Now,
\nGod’s response at first glance does not appear to be the very
\nempathetic. \u00a0 Elijah repeats his claim that “I have been very
\nzealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have
\nforsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your
\nprophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my
\nlife, to take it away,” \u00a0and God replies, \u201cGo to Damascus.\u201d
\nWhich, by the way, is like 500 miles away \u2013 through the desert.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

See?
\n Isn’t it good there was some time under that broom tree before we
\ngot to the cave? \u00a0I think it is because of the time to be, without
\ntrying to do, that Elijah was able to hear God again. \u00a0And be ready
\nfor the next steps of his journey. \u00a0By the way, Elijah was sent to
\nDamascus to anoint two new Kings (one for Aram and one for Israel)
\nAND to anoint his successor. \u00a0And, for a while, Elijah and Elisha got
\nto work together for justice, and Elijah didn’t have any more work he
\ndid on his own. \u00a0After the broom tree, things got easier, and
\nthere was more support.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Thank
\nGod for broom trees, and prophets, and messengers (with food and
\nwater), and rest, and restoration, and sustenance, and silence, and
\ncompanionship, and hope, and a God who cares for all people even when
\nwe’re too exhausted to care for ourselves. \u00a0Amen\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

1<\/a>https:\/\/money.cnn.com\/2018\/05\/17\/news\/economy\/us-middle-class-basics-study\/index.html<\/a><\/p>\n

2<\/a>https:\/\/fivetalents.org\/blog\/2017\/8\/21\/beneath-the-broom-tree-discovering-hope-in-the-deepest-moments-of-suffering<\/a><\/p>\n

– <\/p>\n

Rev. Sara E. Baron
First United Methodist Church of Schenectady
603 State St. Schenectady, NY 12305
Pronouns: she\/her\/hers
http:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/<\/a>
\u2028https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FUMCSchenectady<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\n

June 23, 2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Elijah had it rough. \u00a0In his time, the people were uncertain about their loyalties. \u00a0Their shared story of being led … Continue reading \u201cSheer Silence\u201d\tbased on 1 Kings 19:1-15a<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[34,38,28,39,33,169,171,56,172,170,57,168],"class_list":["post-934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons","tag-fumc-schenectady","tag-progressive-christianity","tag-rev-sara-e-baron","tag-thinking-church","tag-umc","tag-do-broom-trees-grow-in-schenectady","tag-elijah","tag-schenectady","tag-silence","tag-slow-down-youre-moving-too-fast","tag-sorry-about-the-umc","tag-under-the-broom-tree"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=934"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1149,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934\/revisions\/1149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=934"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}