Running Towards Your Giants

Here is today’s sermon based on 1 Samuel 15:34-16:13. 

Yesterday, I had the privilege to visit the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, VA and a few days before that, I was wandering the hills of Antietam National Battlefield in Sharpsburg, MD. I will confess I love history but wandering these two monuments, made me realize something. The men in whose memory, these areas are dedicated, chose to run towards the impossible; towards their giants; and in many cases towards their own death. That is where I want to begin this morning…June 6, 1944 (briefly relay the story of D-Day).

I share this story with you because I believe it shows one of the three responses we can have when we are faced with “giants”. In this case, the Allied army chose to run towards their giants but before we look at why that is our best option, let’s look at two other choices.

• We can ignore our giants
  • Imagine just a minute if the Allied army ignored the Germans as they came ashore
    • Greater death
    • A German victory
    • Germans would not go away so no progress would be made
  • Imagine if the Israelites ignored the Philistines
    • Similar idea to the D-Day invasion
  • My calling story
  • Our response
    • We often believe that ignoring something will simply make it go away
    •  Sadducees and Jesus
    • Homeless
  • Not a good option
• We can run from our giants
  • Imagine if the Allied army arrived at Normandy and turned and ran
    • Back against the English Channel with no place to go
    • A sure defeat
  • What if the Israelites turned and ran
    • The enemy neighbors would know they could be conquered
    • Would face constant warfare
  • When we run from our giants, we find that we are haunted by the “what ifs”
    • My mother and the little girl at the library
    • Exit 85 on I-40
  • When we run from one giant, we are likely to run from the next one
    • Alexander Hamilton said: “Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.”
    • As I said a few weeks ago, people simply stop living and breathe
  • Not a good option
• We can face our giants and even run towards them
  • Allied Invasion of Normandy
    • Many went to certain death but faced their giants
    • A cause greater than themselves
  • David and Goliath
    • Went with confidence that God was on his side
    • Was following God’s plan that was greater than himself
  • Not always a happy ending
    • We may get stepped on
    • We may even die
    • We still need to face our giants
• So where do we go from here?
  • Feel good Christianity
    • Become a Christian and everything will be just fine
    • Follow Jesus and everything will be just fine
      • Need I remind you about
        • Jesus
        • The 12 Apostles
        • Paul
        • Countless persecuted Christians
    • My own calling
      • I do not wear a halo
      • If I did, it would be dirty, dented, and misplaced from time to time
      • Some of my biggest giants have occurred since accepting my calling
  • Real Christianity
    • Hardest thing we will ever do is follow Jesus
    • Challenges and giants everywhere
  • Christianity is not about us
    • Those giants in our path serve the greater of God’s plan
    • We have been called to be God’s children
    • We are anointed
    • Like David, we can face our giants in the confidence of God
  • Facing our giants has eternal consequences
  • Henry Adams, an American educator famously said: “A teacher affects eternity: he can never tell where his influence stops.”
  • Christians affect eternity as well through our actions with others
  •  We are part of God’s greater plan that extends well beyond us

The Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944 was just one battle or operation in a greater war. However, it lead to the weakening of the German forces and ultimately was the beginning of the end for the Germans. Without the efforts of D-Day, VE Day a little less than year later would not have possible. In much the same way, things we do today impact others in ways we can’t imagine. Who knows the implication of paying a few dollars so a little girl can watch a movie? Who knows the implication of giving $5 to perfect strangers at the top of an entrance ramp on the interstate? Who knows the implication of giving up a few evenings in July for VBS? We may never know what our actions will cause tomorrow, next week, or even five years from now. What we do know and what we can do, is choose to face the giants in our path and deal with them knowing they are part of God’s plan  and in the end it is not about us but about the greater good.

Here is today’s worship bulletin.

About these ads