FAST FOOD FAITH
2 Kings 5: 1-14
That¡¯s it. Now I¡¯ve seen it all!
I watched a show called Married by America in which a group of single women and a group of single men gave the TV audience information about themselves and were then paired up by the viewers. Viewers chose who they would marry. Contestants were willing to make a life-long sacred commitment, to start a family with whomever others decided was best for each! Can you believe that!
As a pastor, I shouldn¡¯t be surprised.. We often hear, ¡° Pastor, my fianc¨¦e and I are looking for a church for our wedding. Will you marry us next week?¡± And then they become furious when we say no. Everything has to be now, or better yet, yesterday. No wonder the institution of marriage is in so much trouble!
Why, just the other day a mild mannered young man came into my office ready for a divorce. He complained that his bride was so bossy that she was driving him off the wall. He wanted things to change, immediately.
I told him that he needed to build his self-esteem and that this would take time. Then I gave him a book on assertiveness. He was so desperate to change things that he read
The whole book on the way home. By the time he reached his house he had read the whole book. Determined to be a victim no more, he stormed into the house and walked up to his wife. Pointing a finger in her face, he said, "From now on, I want you to know that ¡°I¡± am the man of this house, and my word is law!
I want you to prepare me a gourmet meal tonight, and to finish the meal you will have baked for me a fabulous dessert.
Then, after dinner, you’re going to draw me my bath so I can relax.
And when I’m finished with my bath, guess who’s going to dress me and comb my
hair ...."
"The funeral director," said his wife.
People don¡¯t want to wait. Do they? What happened to patience to calm. Where did tranquility go?
We life such fast paced lives that we don¡¯t even use normal language any more. We don¡¯t even use whole words. We have invented a new language of abbreviations and acronyms. And this is nothing new.
A veteran of WWII saw a UFO. He went for a CAT scan and an MRI. I ¡®all give you some 411, they¡¯re together 24/7, so we contacted the NAACP. NASA is investigating the tragedy. They called the FBI, not the CIA . And Methodists, forget it. We have the UMW, GBGM, the GBOM, Larry who leads the UMYF is joining David to start a UMJYF group on Wednesdays. We even close our letters with LOL instead of lots of love.
Now be careful with abbreviations or they can get you in serious trouble.
A rather old fashioned lady wrote a letter to a particular campground and asked for reservations. She wanted to make sure the campground was fully equipped but didn¡¯t know quite how to ask about the "toilet" facilities. She just couldn¡¯t bring herself to write the word "toilet" in her letter. After much deliberation, she finally came up with the old fashioned term "Bathroom Commode," but when she wrote that down, she still thought she was being too forward. So she referred to the Bathroom Commode" simply as the "B.C.". Does the campground have its own "B.C.?" is what she actually wrote.
Well, the campground owner wasn¡¯t old fashioned at all, and then he got the letter, he couldn¡¯t figure out what the lady was talking about. That "B.C." really stumped him.
After worrying about it for several days, he came to the conclusion that the lady was asking about the location of the local Baptist Church.
So he sat down and wrote the following reply: "Dear Madam: I regret very much the delay in answering your letter, but I now take pleasure of informing in that the "B.C." is located nine miles north of the camp site and is capable of seating 250 people at one time. I admit it is quite a distance away if you are in the habit of going regularly but no doubt you will be pleased to know that a great number of people take their lunches along, and make a day of it..... They usually arrive early and stay late. The last time my wife and I went was six years ago, and it was so crowded we had to stand up the whole time we were there. It may interest you to know that right now, there is a supper planned to raise money to buy more seats.....They plan to hold the supper in the middle of the B.C., so everyone can watch and talk about this great event.....I would like to say it pains me very much, not to be able to go more regularly, but it is surely not for lack of desire on my part....As we grow older, it seems to be more and more of an effort, particularly in cold weather..... If you decide to come down to the campground, perhaps I could go with you the first time you go...sit with you...and introduce you to all the other folks..... This is really a very friendly community.....
Fast language, fast weddings, fast food, microwave ovens, faxes, cell phones, call waiting. No waiting, instant gratification, that¡¯s what we¡¯re all about.
We have become fast food junkies, munching on McDonalds through a servi-window
with a car full of tired kids. There¡¯s no stopping us now! We take a pill that will relieve our headaches and one to calm our indigestion. The faster they work the better. We don¡¯t know how to endure pain. We take an upper if we¡¯re down and a downer if we¡¯re up.
We¡¯re the instant mashed potatoes generation, fed on instant formula because it takes too long to nurse at the breast. And so we search for a fast food God who will spoon feed us once a week, on Sundays and only for one hour¨D for heaven forbid the minister who dare go overtime!
We want God to be there immediately, but only when we need something from God. On regular days we rather God stay out of our politics, our schools, our relationships and specially our sin. We want religion our way, once a week, no strings attached. But we demand instant miracles, quick responses to our prayers.
Naaman would fit perfectly into our world. He was a famous commander of the Syrian Army, an honorable man of valor, respected and loved. Then Naaman became sick. He had leprosy, a horrendous, crippling disease that brought shame, isolation and grief to its victims. Of course he longed to be healthy, so when he heard about the prophet of Israel he began to maneuver. He had great connections, so he got the King of Syria to write a letter to the king of Israel . What a recommendation! From king to king! He had it made. Then he took great gifts: gold, silver and clothing. He would get his way no matter what!
He finally ends up before the prophet Elisha with great expectations and demands. He demanded to be healed immediately. Like us he wanted it his way and he wanted it ¡°yesterday¡±. He thought (vs. 11)that Elisha would come out, stand before him, call upon the name of the Lord, wave his hand and heal the leprosy.
But the prophet Elisha stayed home and sent a messenger instead. And the messenger told Naaman to go to ¡°go jump in the river¡± to wash in the Jordan seven times.
Of course, the general was furious! He was outraged. How dare this measly man not honor the desires of two kings! How dare Elisha not come out and great him, pay him the respect that¡¯s due him! How dare he not heal him immediately, the way Naaman wanted. How dare he even ask Naaman that he wash in the Jordan even once!
Naaman demanded an instant miracle just because of who he was. He wanted God and the prophet to honor his pride, to feed into his ego, to give in to his commands. Are you like Naaman?
God knew better than to give in to such a request. Naaman needed to learn humility and obedience, to wash in the Jordan seven times. Seven being the number that represents perfection. Only after he obeyed, was he washed clean.
Why be like Naaman? Why continue with this Fast Food Faith frenzy when we have Jesus.
Jesus took his time to grow. There was no instant gratification for our Lord . Jesus humbled himself. Jesus spent long hours and days watching, waiting, talking to the Father. Jesus suffered patiently while he was ridiculed and mocked. Jesus taught us not to seek our own interests, not to feed our egos. ¡°Be still and know that I am God.¡±
Yes, praise God, miracles still happen. In an instant, your body can be healed, a lost child can come home, a heart of stone can turn to God. But the greatest miracle of all is the one that already took place for us. Jesus Christ paid the price for us! We have been ransomed; we have been made clean, washed in the blood of the lamb. Take time to let that sink in! Slow down your pace, it takes discipline and death to self for faith to grow. Spend quiet time each day with Jesus. Join a Bible study group, come to prayer meetings, sing hymns of praise, help those in need, worship your God. Wash in the living waters of the Holy Spirit. Dip 7 times into the Font of love. There¡¯s no need to panic, there¡¯s no need to run. There¡¯s no such thing as Fast Food Faith. True faith matures under the burning flames of many seasons. Go wash seven times in the Living waters of the Holy Spirit of God.
Georgina Pando Connolly First United Methodist Church, Vineland 2/13/03
