Try Making a Sermon Sometime...

In the course of writing my book, the storyline takes the majority of characters to a church service. If you are like me, you are always on the receiving end of the message. It's always great when God greets you in the message with the information you need for life. In this case, the scene is fictional, although obviously the passages of scripture are real.

As this is a Sunday, The Lord's Day, I thought it would be a good post to urge anyone accustomed to sitting in the bench to give making a sermon a try. For once, maybe it's your favorite verses. Or it's a life circumstance that happened to you that you'd want to share. I think it is a strength, not a weakness, that comes from having more than one preacher for a church family.

So, even though I'm not trained to present such a message and the fictional Deacon Byron will be presenting it, I'd like to include some of this homemade sermon here:

The applause rippled through the group as Deacon Byron moved towards the central microphone on the platform.

“Brothers and Sisters in the Lord. Let us stand in respect for the reading of the Word of God.” Deacon Byron began as he thumbed through his well-worn bible. “Our verses today come from the beginning of the bible, from Genesis. Chapter 2, verses 8 and 9 compliments of the King James Version. 'And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.' Here ends the scripture.”

He paused a moment to put down his bible and take a look around the congregation. “I've heard these verses a thousand times. If I'm going to say anything fresh that hasn't been said a thousand times, I am gonna need help from God. You know this scripture as well as I do, but that's the one that is on my heart as I began to prepare for today's message.” He walked back and forth on the platform as if to rally everyone's attention to him to prevent premature nodding off from certain folks prone to sleeping through the sermon.

God likes gardens, for one thing. He put one in the original plan and if you check the back of the bible, in Revelations, there's a garden in there too. I also notice that there is variety in that there are many different types of trees and also choices. There's the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. That's all I had on my notes for three days, folks. Mighty short message. Y'all can go home now. But God wasn't through with me yet.” Deacon Byron gestured emphatically. “You see, I don't know much about gardens. I had no idea that God was going to give me a crash course in gardening. My Great Aunt Tilda called me. She wanted me to come to her house and turn over her dirt for her new flowers. We had that good day when the weather was so nice. So, I thought to myself, how hard could it be? I said yes.”

A few chuckles and comments wafted in from the congregation anticipating his story. The hush resumed as Deacon Byron continued. “The ground was frozen still. The first few inches had thawed but most of it was still hard as a rock. Try as hard as I might, I could not move that ground. That's when the Spirit told me, 'That's the unprepared heart, the one I haven't softened. Come back in a few weeks and see the difference.' I'm a grown man. I bench 250 pounds easily. I could not turn that earth. I told Great Aunt Tilda that I'd have to come back. I drove home and went back to my notes and I wrote a little bit more.”

Deacon Byron strode to the table where the drinks were with a small cloth to wipe the shine from his forehead. The lights on the platform and his energetic delivery had heated him through. “God wasn't done teachin'. He is always teaching. My baby girl bought me a plant for my birthday. She had saved up her allowance and went to the plant store to buy me a flower. It was all pretty and everything. I'm used to getting cut flowers. I know what to do with them. You keep them a week and then you throw them out. She was so excited because this plant wasn't gonna die. Except she gave it to me.” Deacon Byron held up his thumb. “Black. I kill plants. I give them to my wife right away. You don't want me to hold onto no plants. But my sweet child had bought me this plant. So now I hug her and tell her it's beautiful and I can just hear the Lord laughin'. 'Cuz I gotta try, you know?”

he group sent out some shouts. “It's dead now, ain't it.... Preach it! .. Yes SIR!” With the attention of the group squarely on him, Deacon Byron looked over at Bishop Davis and said, 'You know I'm telling the truth because she's sitting right there on the pew!' He pointed out his daughter and waved to her which made her squirm.

“I think it's an attachment thing. In some way the plant figures out that I don't care. Maybe when I was young I tried to care, but no one taught me correctly and so I kind of gave up. But this plant, I care about. I don't want my child thinking that her gift wasn't being appreciated. So I care. I had to look up this plant on the internet. How much sun did it want? How much water? What kind of problems could it have? I had to meet its needs in a very specific way. And if she had given me a different plant, I'd have a different set of instructions. “ Deacon Byron reached behind the podium and brought out his orchid. Setting it down on the podium, he showed the living plant to the group.

“I was looking at this very plant, trying to figure out what this lesson was all about when I heard in my heart, 'You are like this plant.' I thought about that, Church. Saints, people can figure out if you really care or not just like this plant knows that I want it to do well. If a simple plant can figure out if you're real, your co-workers, friends and family can certainly work out the details. And their spiritual, emotional and mental health is connected to this question: Do you care?” He paused to wipe his forehead again and have another drink of water before his pacing across the platform continued.

“There are scriptures that talk metaphorically about people as plants. Isaiah 44 has this to say about it. 'Thus saith the LORD that made thee and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou , Jesurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses.' Here, the double meaning is made very clear. The Holy Spirit is poured out like water. This plant is dependent on me to give it water. We are dependent on God to pour on us love, joy, peace... Come on, Saints, what's the rest of the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians Chapter 5?”

“... longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance.. “They responded on cue. “Say it! .. Glory to GOD!”

Deacon Byron began to conclude his message. “So what does it mean that God planted Himself a Garden in Eden and caused all manner of trees to grow that would be good for food? What does it mean that the tree of life was there along with the knowledge of good and evil?” He looked around to see if the congregation was asleep or alert. Most of them were alert, although a few had nodded off. “Beloved of God, you were planted in Bethel Baptist. Maybe you are a tree. Maybe, you are a flower like this orchid here. “ He pointed to the orchid on the podium with a grin towards his daughter. “God means for you to bring forth fruit. He is not concerned if you have unique requirements. God made each thing different in its needs. He will bring you what you need to produce the fruit, the outcome He has in mind. Don't be comparing an apple tree to a raspberry plant. Don't be looking over your neighbors. Bloom and produce what God has placed in your spirit. And do it for His glory. We are all the works of His Hand, created for His Praise. Now, unto God, the Holy One, the All Powerful, All Seeing, Beginning and the End, be all Praise and Honor as He is with your hearts and minds as we go forth from this place. And all the Saints said?”

“Amen!” Deacon Byron went to the podium to retrieve the orchid and resumed his place in the congregation.