The Next BHAG Sermon

There are times when we become so familiar with one another, with an idea, that we take one another for granted. One of the important roles of the People of Faith is always to DREAM NEW DREAMS. We establish statements of PURPOSE and VALUES and GOALS, so as to continue to grow, to change, to be ever new, while having INTEGRITY.

THANKSGIVING for us is a celebration of home, of family, of feasting on more food than we can imagine. Ironically, we know this remembrance began because our ancestors, who had left home and family were in this new land, and they did not have food to eat. They had survived for several months by eating a ration of only five dried kernels of corn per day. This was all they had. After the long hard winter, the natives of this place sought them out to teach them to farm and to hunt. Now with a table laden to overflow with food, our ancestors sat together with the strangers of this place and each received five kernels, to remember and give thanks for what they had been given, before sharing in the blessings before them.

Our reading from the Old Testament, is a recasting of the REIGN OF KING DAVID. We know from all of First and Second Samuel, that though God and the Nation had so long awaited the coming of this figure, the Shepherd King, the boy who stood up to the Philistine Giant Goliath, in reality David had abused power. He had taken what was not his, he had waged wars, and killed both his wife's husband and his son. On his deathbed, the oracle is read describing the life of David in terms of what might have been, the lofty goals and aspirations of having a king whose leadership was as inspiring as the dawn, who new himself to be a sacred vessel of God, a resource for the people, an instrument of peace, a tool of God, rather than the depression of a dictatorship. WOULD THAT ALL OR LEADERS WOULD BE LESS CONCERNED WITH THEIR LEGACY THAN WITH LEADING THE PEOPLE TO PEACE, PROSPERITY AND COMPASSION.

This One Day out of all the year, is designated as Christ the King Sunday. Where there is a season of expectation for the birth of the Savior, the reality of God's great gift, and a time of remembrance, a season of Lenten reflection, the reality of Christ's sacrifice ad atonement for our sins, and a period of reflection, this day, this one day, is to establish goals and dream dreams knowing the fullness of the Trinity, the completeness of the year. The problem of familiarity, with all appropriate apologies to the History Majors among us, we tend to lump all events together as past, present and future. We recall the building of the Pyramids, the Roman Empire of the Caesars, the signing of the Magna Carta, and the Presidency of George Washington, all as equal being our past. SO include Jesus as Christ the King, one more leader, one more King and authority...but as named to Pilate, in the gospel of John, the Kingdom of Jesus is not the same as the Empire of Rome. Born in a stall, a carpenter's son, a rabbi, a criminal executed upon the cross these are NOT our standard descriptions of the reign of a king. These are circumstance of humility, of integrity and loyalty and faith. By Naming Christ as King, the CROSS & CROWN of our Chancel window, we lift up a different AUTHORTY, a different KINGDOM, a different ET F GOALS than we ascribe to in the SUCCESS of this world.

In their books GOOD TO GREAT and BUILT TO LAST Business Management Gurus Jim Collins and Jerry Porras describe that the purpose of business is NOT TO MAKE MONEY. As human creatures, we are volunteers, with a freedom of will to choose where to apply ourselves, where to invest our time and energy, what we want to be a part of. As such, the name that every association can claim A CORE PURPOSE in working together. A CORE SET OF VALUES that describe how we will relate and work together. And A SET OF GOALS.

We have lifted up before that in te earliest incarnation of tis congregation we were so united with the identity of this community as to have been the LOCAL COURTS and THE LOCAL SCHOOLS and the COMMNITY OF CONFESSION for FULL COMMUNION WITH GOD & ONE ANOTHER.
Last Week in the Brunch Forum LARRY WEISS identified for us that in the Re-esablishment of this Church in the building of this our third Sanctuary in 1891, we drew a C&A in the Center window as we go out into the world, claiming identity as CALVINISTS & ARMENIANISTS, that is a Community that accepts CALVIN'S Premise that God PEDESTINED the FUTURE.
All humanity has sinned, everyone is going to die. But also, as named by ARMENIANISM there is FREE WILL, We can change the future, if we commit ourselves, if we dream new dreams and make them.
SO, the CORE PURPOSE OF THIS CHURCH that has been since our beginning, and will be part of this Church's identity 200 years from now, that which sets this Church apart from all else in this community, banks and businesses, schools and courts and residences, and from other Churches is:
WE SEEK TO BE THIS COMMUNITY'S CENTER, FOR GOSPEL & CULTURE, A CATALYST FOR CHANGE WITH INTEGRITY.
As such, we can claim integrity as having been the Church, the center of Gospel & Culture to Jack's Great Grandparents Franklin & Gerri Wight and the VerVoorts,
and the Church to his Grandparents Dick & Joyce Campbell
and his parents Jeff & Julie and his sister Campbell Torrey.

The Core Values we seek to embody are
FAITH in a Culture of Doubt & Cynicism,
HOPE in a World f Fear and Terrorism,
TRUST even in Broken Relationships.
Faith, Hope, Love.
FREE WILL IN A WORLD PREDESTINATION

But Statements of Purpose and Values are only DREAMS and VISIONS, if we do not have Goals to realize our Dreams. According to Collins and Porras, what we need are not simply Goals but BHAGs: BIG, HAIRY, AUDACIOUS GOALS.
Like Henry Ford setting out to make automobiles so available everyone would have one and te horse would become obsolete as transportation.
Like John Kennedy describing that in 10 years we would not only have put an astronaut in space, not only have orbited the globe, but landed on the moon and brought them back.
A Dozen Years ago, with the roof leaking and several windows cracked, with a secret histry of abuses, this congregation named a BHAG of having a Beautiful Church that wold be a Commnity Center for Worship, the Arts, Education and Mission, a resource of God for this community not just ourselves. A place where secrets are confessed, and vows of relationship and love take the place of secrets.
Five years ago, we made a commitment, a BHAG, to support three Children who were refugees from an Under-Developed Wilderness, from 20 years of Civil War, to become self-sufficient. Now, four are enrolled in their final years of college, a Mother and Son have been re-united, with a sister he never knew he had, this son is married with a job and wife and daughter and brand new home.
Four years ago, we owned a Boarding House for Seniors, that always seemed to have vacancies and was in constant need of repair. We listened to a BHAG of rebuilding this house, with suites for every person, and now there is a waiting list with one person moving in as soon as a room is vacant.
Three years ago, we began talking about a BHAG, sharing ecumenically, with real sharing and fellowship between the Churches, suggesting the idea of a Mission Marketplace. The Episcopal Church was more available the first year, and where often a second year sequel is lesser than the first, this year we had more missions, from more Churches in our community and raised several thousand more dollars even than the first year. 26,000 in support of Missions.
Less than two years ago, I was given a BHAG, I received a blessing and curse from a Tribal Chief in East Africa, that if we fulfilled or promises and built a clinic, we would live long full, blessed lives, and the materials for that Clinic and pumps for a well and a generator for electricity are in Kenya, and there is a doctor. And there are volunteers wanting to go to serve.
About the same time, there was a BHAG to read to children in the schools and libraries, and while there could be many more of us doing so, this is happening.
SO What is the Next BHAG?

We are the CENTER OF GOSPEL & CULTURE in this Community.
We are a Catalyst for CHANGE With INTEGRITY.
Christ calls us to BEAR WITNESS to THE TRUTH.
WE DO SO with FAITH, HOPE AND TRUST.

In the next several months, sons and daughters will come home after fighting in an unpopular war WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP THEIR BECOMING PART OF THIS COMMUNITY after seeing so much of violence and death?
OTHERS WLL BE DISCHARGED FROM PRISON.
In this last year we have celebrated the lives of many of our GRANDPARENTS, how can we help one another in the midst of holidays, when there is an empty place at the Table?
We have had a BABYBOOM of BAPTISMS, yet many of these are embarrassed about separation from their children or how engaging their children might be in worship. How can we help one another?
What is our next BIG HAIRY AUDACIOUS GOAL?