Sermon for February 6th (Sandals of Readiness)

Get ready. Get set. Go! What do those words make you think of? It makes me think of racing. Lacing up my shoes to run the mile for track or preparing for football practice. It seemed like, during high school, I was always having to get ready for something. My freshman year of high school, I came back from the summer vacation at my Grandma and Grandpa’s in Kansas a couple of weeks early in order to participate in two-a-days for football. Since my dad was still working at the Rennaisance Faire in Chicago until school started, I stayed for those last two weeks of summer at my Aunt Deb’s house downstairs in her basement. I’d wake up for the first practice of the day, come home and walk beans in the early afternoon and then go back for the second football practice in the late afternoon. You know how some little events in life make a big impact even though they are really not that big of a deal in the scheme of things? Well, that summer I experienced one of those.

On morning, my cousin Jeremy was at home (he must have been back from college) and I knew that he had been up late the night before. It was really early, about 4 o’clock, when I was awakened by my Uncle Gary calling down the stairs, “I’m going!” Jeremy got up out of bed, put on his clothes and shoes and left in a matter of about 2 minutes. I asked my Aunt later about it and she explained that Jeremy just knew that, no matter what time he came in the night before, if my uncle needed help in the fields he’d call down once and Jeremy had better be ready to leave or else he’d be left behind. He wouldn’t be told about it the night before. He just had to be ready.

The apostle Peter writes this in a letter, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” When I read that statement, I think about my cousin Jeremy who got up at a moment’s notice to go and do his work on the farm. When Jesus Christ comes again and calls you to eternity, will you be ready to go? What if he just asks you to confess your faith in Him before another person. Are you ready to do that? What if another person calls and asks you what you believe? Are you ready today to give an answer for the hope that you have? And if you are not prepared, does it really matter?

I went in to talk with a professor at seminary because I was really bothered by something. I was so excited about telling people about Jesus, but I felt like everyone I knew was already a Christian. All my circle of friends were seminarians. I worked grounds crew with them. I ate with them. I went to the park and played with them (well, their kids played and I talked with them). I had class with them. But I never had the opportunity to share my faith with someone who wasn’t a Christian and that bothered me. I wondered if I should just go to the local mall and start preaching. I knew that it would get some people upset, but who knew if it might make a difference, you know? So, at this meeting, I brought up my dilemma. As usual, he told me a story.

He liked to walk to seminary from his house a mile or two away. He did this, he said, because he always seemed to run into people and have conversations he never expected. One day, he was walking along and passed by a woman. Suddenly, just as she was walking by him, she started falling over and fell into him. He grabbed hold of her, held her up, and started realizing she was having a heart attack. And as she died, right there in his arms, he preached to her the gospel of Jesus Christ. He gave her the good news of salvation. He told her how much Jesus loved her, how faith in his forgiveness was all she needed to think about right then, right there with her breathing her last breath. His point? Be ready. You don’t always need to go out and find someone to preach to. When God is ready, he’ll often give you the opportunity.

Please sit back and listen to the words of this song, (Play the CD through the first chorus) “So maybe this time, I’ll speak the words of life, with your fire in my eyes. But that old familiar fear, is tearing at my words, what am I so afraid of. Cause here I go again. Talking about the rain. And mulling over things that won’t live past today. And as I dance around the truth, time is not his friend, this may be the last chance to tell him that you LOVE him, but here I go again.” What are YOU so afraid of?

I’m afraid that I’m going to be seen as one of those freaky Christians I see on TV, who don’t seem to be able to talk about anything but when they were saved and whether you are or not. I’m afraid that I’ve already known a person almost my whole life and never said anything before, what are they going to think of me? What if something in our relationship changes because of what I say? What’s worse, what if I start and really don’t know what to say? What if I don’t have answers for their questions? So, here I go again, talking about the rain, and mulling over things that won’t live past today . . . like who will win the Super Bowl. Or how about the weather? Cold, isn’t it. And so I dance around ever having to talk about Jesus or what he means to me . . . or what he might mean to them.

Remember, we are studying the armor of God again this week. Ephesians chapter 6, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” Some translations say sandals, or battle shoes, but, really, it just says that your need to be ready to go. For me, that means putting on my shoes before I head out the door.

When you are lying in bed on a Sunday morning and the alarm goes off, but you stay in bed . . . well, the Devil only needs to work for about one hour on that morning to destroy the rest of your week and keep you from hearing God’s Word. The Devil blinds us to the opportunities in our lives to tell others about Jesus. We know that we are not saved by our works and yet if we know someone that “acts” nicely we assume that they must go to church and so we never bring it up . . . what a clever scheme! We can never find time to read our Bibles and so we leave it on the bookshelf, but every free moment we’ve got, we read a little bit on ESPN about how our favorite team is doing. The Devil is a sneaky guy isn’t he?

If you are tried Sunday mornings, fit your feet with readiness . . . go to sleep earlier on Saturday and be prepared Sunday morning. If you believe that EVERYONE you know is already a Christian, prove it and invite them to come on Sunday morning. Come prepared with the worship times, a visitor’s brochure and maybe even a time to pick them up on Sunday morning. Don’t have time to read God’s Word? Take the Bible off the bookshelf and put it by the computer . . . see what might happen with all your free time. Prepare for the opportunity and make the best use of the time you are blessed with.

Put on your armor. Being unprepared doesn’t seem like a big deal does it, but the devil is counting on you not speaking up, not showing up and not preparing yourself. In the movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life” George Bailey experiences all kind of hardships in his life. He helps other people, but it always turns out badly for him. When life finally gets the best of him, he attempts to commit suicide because he believes he would be worth more dead than alive. Clarence, the angel, stops George and shows him what the world would be like without him.

A boy would have died because George hadn’t been there to catch a mistake by a pharmacist. George’s brother, Harry, would have died without George to save him when he was just a kid and, therefore, Harry would have never become a fighter pilot and save the lives of hundreds of other soldiers. George’s wife would have never been married and would have lived a long and lonely life. What would this world look like if Christians always stayed silent, stayed in bed and hoped someone else would read the Bible for them? Where has the devil gained a foothold in this world and in your life because you have lived unprepared to speak the gospel of peace.
Be ready, Jesus said. But what should we say? Jesus told his disciples, “Make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.”

When I was in North Dakota at a synod convention, the director of Evangelism for the ELCA told us a story. He was leaving his house one day when he saw his neighbor topple over a trash can full of pop cans. He wanted to just get going, but he decided to help her instead . . . she had seen him anyway and he didn’t want her to think badly of him. After they’d picked everything up, she thanked him and he was about to leave. But, he’d been teaching a class about how to connect faith to actions and, though he was embarrassed to say it, he quickly responded in a mumble, “Your welcome. I’m a Christian and that’s what God calls me to do.” Then he left.

A few weeks later, this speaker’s wife, a nurse, came in and told him an amazing story. While she was treating a patient, they got to talking and the patient asked her where she went to church. The patient explained that his family was having some trouble at home. His wife had come home a few weeks back after having a conversation with a man who had helped her pick up some cans. The woman had returned to her house and talked for about an hour with her husband about what being a Christian was. They were interested in seeing if having faith in their lives might help their struggles. Can you say wow! You don’t need all the answers. Just put your shoes on and get ready to follow the Holy Spirit.

Every single week here at church, we could just get together and talk about the rain and mull over things that won’t last past today. But, I pray that each week, I am prepared to deliver the words of life to you with God’s fire in my eyes, despite my fear that you won’t like what I must say, despite my fear that this message will fall on deaf ears. Why? Because it’s the best defense I know against the devil in your life and in mine. Get ready. Get set. And through the power of the Holy Spirit maybe this time, maybe this week, you will GO and speak the words of life. Amen.