Sermon – Psalm 42 and 43 – Longing for God

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Churches

Sermon – Psalm 42 and 43 – Longing for God

June 23, 2013

We have been looking at the Book of Psalms, and talking about what the psalmist says about worship. We started off with the idea that worship prepares us for the storms of life. Worship is something we and all of creation were created to do. The god we worship is the creator God who faithfully heals the sick and feeds the hungry as we are called to do in his name. And when we experience gloom God is there to make our lives bright. Today we will ask the question, “Why do we worship?” But first, let's pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

Psalm 42:1-3 ^NIV Psalm 42:1 For the director of music. A maskil of the Sons of Korah. As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. ² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? ³ My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me all day long, "Where is your God?"

The reason we come to worship our creator is because we have a deep longing in our hearts which can only be satisfied by coming into God's presence. The people of God in the 6^th century before Christ were unable to worship. They had been exiled from their homes in Jerusalem to Babylon, and their temple had been destroyed by their captors. The government did not want them to worship their old God. Rather, they were encouraged to worship the official gods of Babylon. But they longed for their own God just as a thirsty deer longs for a stream of water.

This feeling of longing for God is common. Bishop Augustine put it this way “Our souls are restless till they find their rest in you, O God.” Mother Teresa talked about the, “dark night of the soul.” And Jesus cried out from the cross, “Why have you forsaken me?” If you reflect for a moment, all of you will remember times when God seemed to be missing. What do we do at times like these?

Psalm 42:4 ⁴ These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng.

So according to the psalmist, whenever God seems to be missing, we can draw on a rich reservoir of memories of worship experiences from our past when God was near. This is why worship is so important. It helps us lock in these memories so that we have them when we need them. And this is why it is so important to bring children to worship. As children grow they need to learn the Bible stories and how we worship when God is near so that they too will have these memories when eventually God seems far away. But remembering is not the only arrow in our quiver. We have something else. Listen again to the psalmist.

Psalm 42:5-6 ⁵ Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and ⁶ my God. My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon-- from Mount Mizar.

So in addition to relying on our memories God also fills us with hope. Whenever God seems far away, when God is at his farthest, God will fill us with memories and hope that will sustain us until we are able to worship once again. So what can we do when God seems so far away? Listen again.

Psalm 42:7-10 ⁷ Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. ⁸ By day the LORD directs his love, at night his song is with me-- a prayer to the God of my life. ⁹ I say to God my Rock, "Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?" ¹⁰ My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, "Where is your God?"

When God seems to have abandoned us we still have the privilege of turning toward him in prayer and song, and offering up our complaints. So God uses our memories, fills us with hope and leads us to prayer so that we can find him when he seems so far away.

I would like to share with you a story about a prominent scholar who found himself longing for God. Dr. John Mulder grew up in a Presbyterian church where he was baptized and confirmed. He was ordained as a pastor in the Presbyterian church and both of his children were baptized in a Presbyterian church. Dr. Mulder taught for seven years at Princeton Theological Seminary and then became President of Louisville Presbyterian Seminary. Through most of his life, God never seemed too far away.

But then he did some shameful things. Doctors later told him that his behavior changed because of his undiagnosed bi-polar disease and his alcoholism. Dr. Mulder lost his position and his family and found himself in a rehab facility trying to get his life back together. He prayed over and over again asking God for forgiveness, but God seemed very very far away. Listen again to the psalmist.

Psalm 42:11 ¹¹ Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

After two months in rehab Dr. Mulder finally gave up. He just stopped asking for forgiveness. He just prayed instead, “God, open me up.” It was the only thing he could think of to say to God. Then one morning while he was making breakfast he was surrounded by white light. It was neither frightening nor blinding. Rather the light was warm and embracing. As he stood in the light he heard no sounds until finally he heard a voice which said, “You are not alone.” God was always with Dr. Mulder. God never went away. God just seemed to be missing because Dr. Mulder was focusing on himself and his problems. It wasn't until he focused on the hope God was offering him, built on the foundation of his memories that he was finally able to see the God who had never left.

So too with us. God never leaves us. Even though he may seem so far away he is really right here with us. All we have to do is to remember what he has done for us in the past and accept the hope he is offering. Then we will experience God's presence with us. Listen to the psalmist.

Psalm 43:1-4 ^NIV Psalm 43:1 Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; rescue me from deceitful and wicked men. ² You are God my stronghold. Why have you rejected me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy? ³ Send forth your light and your truth, let them guide me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. ⁴ Then will I go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.

Since Dr. Mulder's experience with God his life has turn around. Most of the people he hurt have forgiven him. He had been reconciled with friends and family. His wife has taken him back after realizing the sorrow he had experienced for what he had done. For years he had thought about Jesus with his brain. But after meeting Jesus personally, Dr. Mulder now knows that our faith is more than just asking for forgiveness. Although repentance is important, what God really wants is a relationship with us. Jesus put it this way:

Matthew 7:7-8 ⁷ "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

http://pres-outlook.org/infocus-features/current-features/18447-finding-god.html

And so whenever God seems to be far away, turn to your memories of a time when God was close. Be filled with the hope God wants to give you. And accept the opportunity to turn to God in prayer. Do these things and you will realize that God is always there and wants to have a relationship with you. Accept this offer and your life will never be alone.

Lord God, whenever our hearts long for your presence, open us up so they we may received your forgiveness, love and hope. Help us to always know that you are near. We pray this in the name of your son. Amen.

Sermon – Psalm 5 - Prayers of Lament

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Churches

Sermon – Psalm 5- Prayers of Lament

June 16, 2013

We have been looking at the Psalms to learn how to worship. We have found that worship prepares us for the storms of life. We have seen that worship is not limited to us in church but is something all of creation does. And we have seen that the object of our worship is a God of justice who feeds the hungry, releases the captives and heals the sick. For us to worship mean that we do what we were created to do and that means to participate in God's work in this world. Today we will see how to worship with injustice falls on us. How can we worship a God of justice when we experience just the opposite? Worshiping at times like these is called lamentation. We will get to this, but first let's pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

Psalm 5:1-12 ^NIV Psalm 5:1 For the director of music. For flutes. A psalm of David. Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my sighing. ² Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. ³ In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation. ⁴ You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell. ⁵ The arrogant cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who do wrong. ⁶ You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the LORD abhors. ⁷ But I, by your great mercy, will come into your house; in reverence will I bow down toward your holy temple. ⁸ Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies-- make straight your way before me. ⁹ Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart is filled with destruction. Their throat is an open grave; with their tongue they speak deceit. ¹⁰ Declare them guilty, O God! Let their intrigues be their downfall. Banish them for their many sins, for they have rebelled against you. ¹¹ But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. ¹² For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

In California, this time of year, there is a weather phenomena called, “June Gloom”. Usually Southern California is blessed with blue skies and bright sunshine, but in the morning hours of June clouds blow in from the Pacific Ocean to cover the land like a blanket. Brightness is replaced by gloom.

Haven't we all experienced gloom in our own lives? There are times when we just don't feel like singing God's praises. The world seems to be a gloomy place. Things happen to us in the world we live in that make it difficult to praise God. I don't have to tell you what these things are. We have all experienced them. And when they happen the last thing we want to do is to praise God. So if worship is just about singing praises to God, what do we do when we just don't want to? Thankfully worship is not just about praising God. There is another aspect of worship. It is what we do when praises just can't come from our lips. And it is called a lamentation.

Psalm 5 is an example of a lamentation. The psalmist is in distress. He is sighing, crying and pleading with God. Possibly he has been up all night and is about to enter the temple for morning worship. And so he prays a prayer of lament.

A lamentation is always addressed to our creator. The psalmist spoke this prayer to Yahweh, the Lord, my King and my God. When we experience injustice and unfairness in our world we have privilege of taking our complaints directly to God. We can do this in worship. Worship prepares us for the times when awful things happen. And it is in worship that we can bring our complaints to God when they do.

The psalmist complaint to God is that he was a victim of gossip. People have been telling lies about him. He is oppressed by hurtful and slanderous words. His oppressors are wicked, evil, boastful and speakers of lies. And, of course, this goes against everything that God stands for. So why does God allow this situation to go on? Worship is a safe place where we can bring our complaints to God. Whatever it is that bothers us, our grief, our pain, our suffering, we can bring in to God in prayer. Worship is not just some happy place where we joyfully sing God's praises. Is is also the place where we bring our concerns that the world is not the way God wants it to be. And so in worship we demand that God do something about it.

The psalmist wants God to do something about his problems. He asks God to listen to his prayers. He wants God to heed what he has to say. And he wants God to listen, really listen, to his cries. This is our promise that when we come to worship and bring our problems with us, in Jesus Christ, God does listen to us. God does hear our prayers. God does heed us and will respond to us.

The psalmist also wants God to lead him in the straight paths. Too often when we experience evil we want to do evil in return. We mistakenly think that this is the meaning of an “eye for and eye” and a “tooth for a tooth”. God does not want us to retaliate against those who harm us. God does not want us to judge. God will take care of all of that. What God wants is for us to continue to be a loving and generous people participating in God's work of redeeming a sinful world.

Here is a example of someone who knows something about prayers of lament. Angelina Atyam lives in northern Uganda. In 1996 138 students from her daughter's school were abducted. Eventually 109 students returned but Angelina's daughter remained in captivity for seven years. During this time Angelina experienced anger and bitterness. She had difficulty worshiping especially the prayer that talks about forgiving our debtors. But she continued to worship and eventually God allowed her to forgive and joy replaced her anger. After her daughter returned she continued to worship and pray for the other children who are victims of violence. http://www.lausanneworldpulse.com/themedarticles.php/1185?pg=all

Even though the psalmist is experiencing great hardship he still puts his trust in the Lord. This is an acknowledgment that God has been faithful in the past. And God will be faithful in the future. And so we can be confident that God will not tolerate evil doers, and that we will experience a better day. Trusting God gives us great hope that our futures will be bright. And so when we experience gloom we can come to worship filled with hope and singing God's praises. This is exactly what the psalmist did. As the sun came up after a long night of prayer he entered the temple to sing God's praises in worship filled with the hope that God blesses the righteous, and surrounds them with his favor as with a shield. (from v. 12)

The people of Southern California see the “June Gloom” as a blessing. The relentless summer sun will soon heat their days to over 100 degrees, their lawns will soon turn brown and die. But these days in June are wonderful. The clouds from the Pacific keep the temperatures at a comfortable 70 degrees, natural air conditioning. But as June gives way to July the marine layer burns off earlier and earlier each day until it is no more. Everyone enjoys “June Gloom” and hopes that it will last.

Would that we experience our gloom as a blessing from God. Protecting us from further trouble and preparing us for a brighter future. We will experience this if we bring our lament to God in worship, offering up our complaints and trusting that God will act. Then our gloom will turn to joy as we sing praises to our creator. Let us pray.

Lord in heaven, our God and our King, we bring to you this day our prayers of lament. There are many things wrong in this world, and we don't understand why you allow evil to continue. But we trust in your faithfulness that one day your justice will prevail on earth. We are filled with hope that you will restore us and fill us with joy. This we pray in the one with ears to hear us, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Sermon – Psalm 146 – God Remains Faithful Forever

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Churches

Sermon – Psalm 146 – God Remains Faithful Forever

June 9, 2013

We have been looking at some Psalms to learn more about worship. Two weeks ago we saw that worship prepares us for the storms of life. Last week we heard that worship in not limited to Sunday morning and us, but is something the entire created world is doing. Today we will learn more about who it is we worship. We will get to this, but first let's pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

Psalm 146:1-10 ^NIV Psalm 146:1 Praise the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul. ² I will praise the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. ³ Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save. ⁴ When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. ⁵ Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God, ⁶ the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them-- the LORD, who remains faithful forever. ⁷ He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets prisoners free, ⁸ the LORD gives sight to the blind, the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down, the LORD loves the righteous. ⁹ The LORD watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked. ¹⁰ The LORD reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the LORD.

The Psalm begins with the Hebrew word Hallelujah. Hallelu means to praise someone or something. Jah stands for Yahweh, the Lord God of Israel. So we sing in English, “praise the Lord”. In worship we sing praises to God.

The psalmist teaches us that worship is a life long activity. We worship God from the moment of birth until we die. We do this because we were created to sing praises to God. And we are engaging in worship whenever we are doing what God has created us to do.

All too often though we worship something other than God. The psalmist says that we sometime worship “princes”. This would be our political leaders and government. We worship government whenever we believe that government will ultimately save us. If we lose our jobs government will will care for us with unemployment checks. If we lose our heath and have no insurance government will give us the health care we need. If we lose our homes and churches in a storm government will be there to help us rebuild. If our parents are getting old and can no longer live in their homes, government will help them get into a nursing home. Government is very seductive. It will offer us what we need, but it will demand our praises. And so we are greatly tempted to sing praises to and worship our government.

But the psalmist points out that all princes and governments are mortal. They will not go on forever. And if history is a guide, the moment you need government the most it will not be there for you. Government, like any human institution is stained by sin. And so you should expect corruption. And if government is corrupt then it cannot save you. So don't sing its praises, don't worship it.

So if we should not be worshiping government, who should we worship, and why? The psalmist reminds us that the only object of our worship should be the Lord, God of Jacob. But why? The psalmist gives us two reasons. First, the Lord is the creator of everyone and everything. Therefore God is our creator. And as creatures of that God we were created to worship him. Singing praises to God is as natural to us as breathing and eating. It takes enormous amounts of evil to keep us from worshiping. The second reason we are to worship God is that he is faithful. God did not create us and then leave us. God is with us still, guiding, nurturing and protecting us. And this God is faithful. Unlike government He will always be there when we need him. So when you need help turn to God and rest in His faithfulness.

So how do we know that God is faithful? What evidence is there that God cares for us and will never leave us alone? Let's look at some of the evidence we have.

Shakeela Bibi attends a small Presbyterian church in Pakistan. Recently while preparing bread for a Bible study she heard a commotion in the street. A group of boys with sticks was heading to the church. She ran to the church to warn those inside of the coming mob. This angered the mob. She was beaten and shot. Shakeel Bibi is a Christian martyr. The psalmist said, ^“He upholds the cause of the oppressed.” http://www.opendoorsusa.org/persecution/christian-martyrs-stories/shakeela-bibi

Lemi is a four year old girl living in Tanzania. In Tanzania 46% of the population is malnourished. Her grandmother became concerned as Lemi became thinner and thinner. World Vision came to Lemi's village with a plan. The rice farmers were organized into a group and are now able to get higher prices for their crops. As a result Lemi now eats “rice, banana, milk, beans, fish, meat, and vegetables”, and is now getting fat. The psalmist said, “(He) gives food to the hungry”. http://blog.worldvision.org/stories/reclaiming-the-garden-of-eden/

In 2010 Jeremiah Zigwa found out that he had HIV/AIDS. Shortly thereafter his wife died in childbirth leaving him to take care of his eight children alone. Jeremiah had no idea of what to do, and seriously considered suicide. He reached out to community based Christian counseling organization for help. There got him the medicine he needed. And Christians provided for him ten chickens so he could start an egg business. Jeremiah was also given a couple of pigs, but found them to difficult to care for. So he sold the pigs, and some piglets and bought a your cow and bull. He now raises cattle, chickens and ducks. The psalmist told us, “The LORD sets prisoners free, the LORD gives sight to the blind, the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down, the LORD loves the righteous.” http://blog.worldvision.org/stories/jeremiah-dares-to-dream/

Ferdoz lives in a tent in Lebanon. She left her home in Syria with her five children to escape the violence of the civil war. Her rent is $330 a year, which she cannot afford. She owes $200 for plastic sheeting for the tent and another $40 to local shop keepers for food. Dia is the wife of a shop keeper who gives eggs to Ferdoz when her husband is not looking. But she know that her husband's business can't go on much longer. Neither Ferdoz nor Dia know what to do. Today a million refugees from Syria are in Lebanon and Jordan. Another 300K are in Turkey. It is estimated that if the conflict continues there could be another 6.8 million people fleeing Syria. The United Nations says that it needs $1.5B, but this would not be nearly enough. World Vision is raising $40M to feed as many children as they can. The psalmist says, “The LORD watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow.” http://blog.worldvision.org/disaster-relief/crisis-in-syria-part-6-debts-difficulties-rise-for-refugees/

So we know what God is doing in the world. God is relieving the oppressed, feeding the hungry, heals the sick, and is concerned for the poor. This is the God we worship. So how do we sing praises to a God like this? We worship this God by doing what God created us to do. And the implication is obvious. We were created by God to participate in his work in this world. And if God is concerned about the oppressed, the hungry, the sick and the poor then so should we. So our work should be to find out what needs there our in this community, throughout the nation, and around the world. And then we need to do something, even if it is just little, but something that advances God mission of Earth. As a church we should look for ways to partner with Christian organizations doing God's work. There are opportunities at the Samaritan Shelter and Hartley Hall here in town. We can partner with Presbyterian Disaster Assistance to care for the needs of people hurt in the storms. Many of the international stories I have told you today came from World Vision, which is doing wonderful work all over the world. The psalmist wants you to remember that the reason you do these good works is because they are how you sing praises to the God who created you and will be with you forever.

Father in heaven, we thank you for caring for us and the world we live in. We know that your heart breaks over the oppression, hunger, disease, and poverty which sin has produced. Use us and use our church to rid these problems from the world. This we pray in your son's name. Amen.  

Sermon – Psalm 96 – Worship in the Splendor of Holiness

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Churches

Sermon – Psalm 96 – Worship in the Splendor of Holiness

June 2, 2013

Last week we talked about Sunday worship and how regular worship prepares us for the storms of life. When disasters strike worship enables us to see God's gracious work in the midst of the disaster. Today we will expand our view of worship and ask, “Does worship extend beyond Sunday morning and beyond you and me. The answer might be surprising. We will get to this, but first let's pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

In the 18^th century there lived a great Scottish philosopher name David Hume. Dr. Hume was primarily interested in how we know something. He was an empiricist. He thought that the only way you could know something is if you could perceive it with one of your senses. In order to know something you had to see it, or taste it, or smell it, or touch it, or hear it. Everything you know came to you through your senses of seeing, tasting, smelling, touching and hearing. Anything that you think you know other than what you perceive with you senses much be a construct of your mind and not something that really is out there. Hume's thinking has had two major impacts on the world. On one hand it provided the philosophical foundation for modern science. But on the other hand, it caused us to question the existence of our God who cannot be seen, tasted, smelled, touched or heard.

A Christian philosopher from Germany named Immanuel Kant was greatly influenced by Hume's work, and believe the only way to know something was to perceive it with you senses. But he also believed in God, and wondered where God fit in. Kant taught that it did not make sense to speak about God in the world around us because God could not be perceived by our senses in that world. But it did make sense to talk about God with reference to faith and morals. So with Kant the world was divided into two spheres. One sphere belongs to science which explains the world we perceive with our senses. The other sphere belongs to religion which explains the world of faith and morals.

We come to church on Sunday to grow in faith and learn how to life moral lives. Then on Monday we go back to our farms, schools, and businesses and act as if God doesn't exist. We read the farm report or educational journal to see what the scientific experts have to say, but the Bible is left at home to gather dust until Sunday morning. And so for three hundred years or so we have had a wall between these two spheres. On Sunday mornings we come to church and discuss matters of faith and our moral conduct. But as soon as we leave church we enter into another world that is governed by science. There is a complete separation between the church and science.

But this is are problems with this. A scientific world unconstrained by God will produce weapons which can and do kill millions of people. A scientific world that ignores God will produce things without regard for the pollution it causes in our air and water. By the twentieth century these problems and others like them became realities. Millions will killed in war and our air and water became polluted. And this has caused people to question the philosophies of Hume and Kant and the separation of science and religion.

One solution to all this has been offered by the New Age movement. Their idea is to think of the things of the earth as sacred. If the water in a stream or pond or bay or ocean is holy then we should not pollute it. If women and men are holy then we should do whatever to prevent war and violence that causes death. You can see this thinking today in the Environmentalism movement. Here on the eastern shore there are environmentalists who see the Chesapeake Bay and seafood in it as holy, and they do not want this to be defiled by runoff from chicken farms. But there is a problem with this way of thinking. Things of the world are not in themselves holy. Things we perceive with our senses are created by God and are holy based upon their status as created by God. I would propose that we need a new way of thinking about these things and the best place to start is in the Bible. So lets take a look at what it say in Psalm 96.

Psalm 96:1-13 ^NIV Psalm 96:1 Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. ² Sing to the LORD, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. ³ Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. ⁴ For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. ⁵ For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. ⁶ Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and glory are in his sanctuary. ⁷ Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. ⁸ Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering and come into his courts. ⁹ Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth. ¹⁰ Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns." The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity. ¹¹ Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; ¹² let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; ¹³ they will sing before the LORD, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his truth.

The world view of the psalmist is that everything in the world, everything we see, hear, smell, taste and touch, was created by God. All of God's creation, everyone and every thing in the world is singing God's praises. And therefore everything is worshiping God. The chickens in the chicken houses are worshiping God. The corn and potatoes growing in the fields are worshiping God. The children in your classroom and the customers in your store are all worshiping God. So how does a cornstalk or dairy cow worship God? They sing praises to God by doing what God created them to do. The cornstalk grows delicious and nutritious kernels for us to eat as an act of worship. The cows sing God's praises by producing milk. And we worship God just by eating a bowl of cornflakes in the morning.

So if all the world is singing praises to God does that mean that balls and clubs are worshiping God right now on golf courses? Does this mean that boats and fishing rods are singing praise to God this morning on the bay? And if so could we worship God by fishing or playing golf on Sunday morning? Those are trick questions. You have to be in church on Sunday mornings to hear the word of God read and proclaimed and to pray for each other. Only by doing this will your faith grow and you will begin to see all of creation worshiping just as you do. So keep coming to church every week, but when you are in your boat or on the golf course remember that everything you perceive is worshiping its creator God by doing what God created it to do.

You would never condemn anything for doing what God created it to do. God created chicken manure to fertilize fields. Chickens praise God by creating this manure. God created the bay as a home for crabs and rockfish. The bay worships God when if produces seafood in abundance. We sing God's praises when we use chickens manure properly and harvest seafood responsibly so that both agricultural products and seafood will continue to sing praises to God with abundance.

As we gather around this table this morning we see bread and juice. Both of these are God's creation. A wheat stalk praised God by growing the grain. A farmer, a miller and a baker praised God by turning the hard grain into soft bread. A grape vine, soil, sun and rain all worshiped God by producing the delicious juice we now enjoy. And the deacons sang God's praise in setting this table for us. And as we eat the bread and drink the juice we are engaging in worship of our creator.

So we must reject the old notion that God is only concerned with faith and morals. God is much bigger than that. God is the creator of the universe and everything in it was created to sing his praises. We too were created for worship and are given the special gift of God's word which we hear each Sunday morning and equips us to perceive all of creation worshiping God. We see, hear, smell, taste and touch what God has created. And we were created to worship God by using God's creation to glorify him. Let us pray.

Creator God, we come here this morning to sing your praises in worship. Bless us with your presence and be with us as we go into the world. Help us to see, hear, smell, taste and touch the works of your creation as they sing praises to you in worship. Guide us in the use of your creation so that everything we do will be for your glory. This we pray in your son's name. Amen.