Send Me?

A sermon preached by Rev. Ginger E. Gaines-Cirelli at Foundry UMC May 30, 2021, Trinity Sunday. “The Call: Good Trouble” series.

Text: Isaiah 6:1-8

The late U.S. Congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis often told the story of asking his parents and other elders about the racist signs he witnessed all around. He said, “They would say, ‘boy, that’s the way it is. Don't get in the way and don’t get in trouble.’ But when I was 15 years old, in 1955, I heard of Rosa Parks. I heard the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. on the radio. The action of Rosa Parks and the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. inspired me to find a way to get in the way. And I got in the way. And I got in trouble, ‘good trouble.’”  He repeated these words often and they have become a kind of call to all people of faith and conscience in America. Again and again he urged, “Get in good trouble, necessary trouble.” Over the next weeks, we’ll explore scripture with an eye toward God’s call in our lives as individuals and as a congregation—and how we, as followers of Jesus, are called to get in some good trouble in order to love God, love each other, and change the world. I hope you’ll use this time to reflect on what God may be saying to YOU and to listen for particular invitations or challenges each week. We begin today with a message about call in the midst of crisis. //

Let us pray… God of justice and of new life, open our hearts and the ancient text of scripture by the power of Holy Spirit that we might receive what you have for us today. Amen.

I’ve recently started watching the television show “The Walking Dead.” On the surface, it’s a story of a zombie apocalypse. But more than that, so far as I can tell from the 7 episodes I’ve seen so far, it’s a story of human relationship, ethics, and the gifts and challenges of life in community. It’s also an opportunity to explore the different ways people react and respond in the midst of crisis. We, of course, don’t anticipate a zombie apocalypse anytime soon, but I have found that as a person who’s interested in human behavior, community dynamics, and spiritual and personal growth, watching the show has led me the question I often ask when confronted with a challenging human scenario: “What would I be like if that happened to me?

The truth is, we have been in a multi-layered crisis over the past year and a half, a multi-phased crisis, a crisis that’s spun out and highlighted multiple other crises. And some of us are experiencing personal or interpersonal crises of various kinds. What are you like in the midst of crisis? What are we as a congregation like? What do we do? How do you respond?

Theologian and spiritual teacher, Elisabeth Koenig writes, “The anxiety-ridden energy of a crisis contains potential for change. Confronted squarely and reflectively in the presence of God, the energy of crisis can expand our sense of who we are.” 

Crisis and the anxiety that rides in on it may not be things we want to welcome into our lives or spend energy on. But there are moments in our lives as persons and communities—like right now—when we cannot avoid crisis, when we can’t pretend that everything’s “fine.” In these moments, the question becomes, who and how will you be in that space? 

I imagine I don’t need to outline all the ways that crisis and anxiety can lead to defensiveness, blaming, confusion, reactivity, distorted perception, paranoia, breakdowns in communication and thoughtful engagement with others, and personal panic and inertia. Dissociation from self and disconnection from others often happens. Fight, flight, and freeze are common. All of this can lead to pretty unpleasant things.

Spiritual wisdom from many traditions—and certainly Christian wisdom—encourages us to resist the urge to run away; we’re encouraged to be aware of what’s happening around us and what comes up in us; to observe and to try to name as best we can what’s going on; to breathe, to pray, to bring all of our f