Gather Sticks, Rekindle Flames

Text focus: Ezekiel 37:15–22 & Ephesians 4:1–6

There is something about gathering together that changes the way we see things. When we are by ourselves, we tend to see what we don't have.

We see the empty pew.

The empty field.

The empty bank account.

The thing that didn't happen.

The thing we hoped would happen.

The thing we thought God was going to provide that we still don’t have.

But when we gather together, something changes.

We begin to see not only what is missing.

We begin to see what is still here.

We see people.

We see their gifts.

We see possibilities.

We see what God has placed in our hands.

Because sometimes scarcity is real.

And the gospel doesn't ask us to pretend otherwise.

Instead, it invites us to ask what we can do with what God has entrusted to us.

And sometimes, we discover that what God has given us is enough, when we are willing to put it together.

That's part of what I hear in our scripture readings today.

In Ezekiel, God tells the prophet to take two sticks. One represents Judah. The other represents Joseph and the tribes of Israel associated with him.

And God tells Ezekiel to take these two sticks.

And put them together to make them one.

Now, let’s talk about a little bit of the history of Israel and Judah

In 931 BCE after the reign of King Solomon, the kingdom of Israel was divided into a northern kingdom which took the name Israel and a southern kingdom which took the name Judah.

This scripture in Ezekiel is written to those in exile in Babylon between 593 and 571 BCE about 350 years after the division of the kingdom.

So, these are not just two random pieces of wood.

These sticks represent two groups of people who had been divided.

They had different histories, experiences, loyalties, identities.

And God says to Ezekiel bring them together.

Not because their differences don't matter.

But because their differences don't have to keep them apart.

God says, essentially, you don't have to remain divided.

I can make something new out of what has been separated.

And you will be stronger together.

God doesn't simply say, "I will make them one."

God says "I will make them one in my hand."

That's important, because the unity isn't ultimately something the people manufacture.

It is something God does.

God calls us into unity, just as God brings these sticks together.

And I think that's a particularly important message for us today.

Because we are gathered here from different churches.

We each have different traditions and personalities.

Different worship styles and histories.

Different ways of doing things.

And yet today, we are here together.

Unity doesn't mean pretending our differences don't matter.

Sometimes they matter deeply.

But Paul calls us to decide that our differences will not be greater than the grace that binds us together.

Not because we are all alike.

But because we carry the most important thing in common.

We belong to the same God.

We share the same source of our faith.

Our baptism reminds us that we belong to one body, the Church.

The church that lives beyond the walls of any building or institution.

That unity is what Paul is talking about in Ephesians when he says: "Conduct yourselves with all humility, gentleness, and patience. Accept each other with love, and make an effort to preserve the unity of the Spirit with the peace that ties you together."

Notice that Paul doesn't say unity is easy.

He doesn't say, "Everybody must agree" or even that "Everybody must think the same way."

Paul says, be humble. Be gentle. Be patient and bear with one another in love.

And then he says, Make an effort to preserve unity.

Make an effort,

Being together takes work.

Community takes work.

Unity takes work.

Sometimes that work means patience or forgiveness.

Sometimes it means letting somebody else do something differently than you would do it.

Because being one doesn't mean becoming identical.

It means learning how to belong to one another.

And I think we can see what that looks like right here at Circle J.

Because Circle J has a problem this year.

Actually, that's probably an understatement.

This year, because of multiple weather events, there are only four* apples in the entire orchard.

Four.

Now, normally, those apples aren't just apples.

They are part of what makes this place work.

The orchard has been an important source of income for Circle J.

Those apples have helped support this ministry.

Over the years many of those apples have ended up in pies that the people from this community have made with the express purpose of supporting Circle J.

It's a beautiful system.

The orchard produces apples.

The community turns those apples into pies.

The pies are sold to support Circle J.

Everybody contributes something.

Everybody receives something.

And helps keep this place going.

Except this year...

There are four apples.

That's not exactly an abundant crop, in fact it is nearly no crop at all.

And I imagine that if you looked at the orchard and thought only about what you expected to find there, you might be tempted to say, "Well, I guess we're out of luck."

The apples aren't there.

The pies can't happen.

The fundraiser can't happen the way it normally happens.

You may even find yourself wondering why didn’t God provide a harvest this year.

Because the provision we expected isn't there.

And that's where this story gets interesting.

Because sometimes God's provision doesn't look like what we expected.

One of my spiritual practices of late has been gardening. I have been so blessed to have the space to grow an actual garden this year.

And my garden has been abundant in tomatoes,

It has produced more than I can eat on my own.

But my zucchini died early in the year, it got sun scorched.

So I had an idea, I thought I’ll just see what might come of it.

And I posted on the community Facebook page asking if anyone had overgrown zucchini.

And wouldn’t you believe it, I found a few someones in town that had extra zucchini.

So I traded my extra tomatoes for their extra zucchini.

And I brought that zucchini home and it became zapple pies.

Now, if you have never heard of a zapple pie, it is basically zucchini pretending to be an apple. It looks and tastes just like an apple pie, and honestly if no one told you, it would be difficult to tell the difference.

And I'm not saying it can fool everyone.

But put enough cinnamon and sugar in it, zucchini can be pretty delicious.

So I made some zapple pies.

And with the help of a few of you in this room, I got those pies up here to Circle J where they have been frozen and will be sold at Applefest on Sept 12th.

Now, here's the thing.

Those pies didn't come from the Circle J orchard.

Because there weren't enough apples.

They are not the same as the pies we would normally make.

They didn't come through the normal process.

But they still came together.

And they will be delicious and hopefully enjoyed.

Because when the expected provision wasn't there...

people got creative with the provision that was.

Circle J had a need,

I asked God what do I have and God provided tomatoes, to me,

zucchini to someone else.

And suddenly, there was a way forward.

Not the way we expected.

But a way.

And I think that's a lesson we need to remember as a church.

Because we can become so focused on what we think God is supposed to provide that we miss what God has actually placed in our hands.

We look around and see what we don’t have

Not enough people, money, energy, time.

But Scripture asks a different question: What do you have?

Not what do you wish we had,

or what did we have 20 years ago,

We are being invited to look again at what we have right now.

Because God has always been pretty good at doing something with things that don't look like enough.

Remember that story with just five loaves and two fish that feed 5000?

Or the widow that only had a handful of flour and a little oil.

Or that tiny mustard seed.

Or Circle J’s Four apples and my tomatoes.

And God doesn't tell Ezekiel to go find a new tree.

The instruction is not to find something better

or stronger

or more impressive.

God says, take what you have.

This stick and that stick.

Put them together.

And I will do something with them.

That's the heart of community.

We don't all bring the same thing.

But we can bring what we have.

And God can put it together.

Whether it is tomatoes and zucchini,

The passion for baking or the knowledge of organizing an event.

Maybe it is the time to sit at the booth and sell the pies,

Or the ability to tell the story in compelling ways.

Someone has thirty years of experience.

And someone else has an idea nobody has thought of before.

And suddenly, what one person could not do alone becomes possible because we did it together.

But here's the part I don't want us to miss.

Ephesians tells us that coming together isn't simply about combining our resources.

It's about how we treat one another.

Paul names: Humility. Gentleness. Patience. Love. Peace.

Those aren't just nice personality traits.

They are the things that allow a community to survive when things don't go according to plan.

Because it is easy to be united when everything is going well.

It is easy to gather around an abundant crop and celebrate when the orchard is full.

It's easy to work together when everyone agrees about what should happen and how it should be done.

But what happens when the apples don't come?

What happens when the budget is tight?

When the church is changing and the future doesn't look like the past?

That's when we find out what kind of community we really are.

Do we turn toward one another?

Or do we turn on one another?

Do we ask, "Why aren't you bringing what I expected?"

or do we ask, "What can I bring to support what you have?"

Because that is what it means to be the church together.

Not bringing the same thing.

But be willing to bring what we have

and making the effort that Paul calls for in Ephesians 4:3

Will we come together even when it’s hard?

Because sometimes the person God calls, doesn't look like the person we expected.

Sometimes the solution doesn't look like the answer we expected.

Sometimes the provision doesn't look like the harvest we expected.

Sometimes the apple is actually a zucchini.

And perhaps the question God asks us is "Will you trust me enough to use it anyway?"

I think that's why this gathering is so beautiful and important.

We are not here simply to prove that we can all fit in the same room.

We are here to remind ourselves that God's church is bigger than any one congregation.

It is in our differences that we can join together for God’s glory.

Some in this room may know how things have always been done.

Others may be willing to ask whether there's a new way.

And if we follow what Paul teaches, we can find value in both

That's what God does.

God takes what is scattered and brings it together.

God takes different people and makes one body.

And maybe that's what some of us need to hear today.

Because maybe you came here carrying disappointment.

Maybe God's provision hasn't looked the way you thought it would.

Maybe you expected something different from your church.

Your community.

Your family.

Your future.

Maybe you are looking at your own life and thinking, "There just isn't enough."

Not enough energy.

Not enough money.

Not enough people.

Not enough answers.

Not enough of whatever you thought you were going to have by this point.

And the temptation is to stare at the four apples and conclude, "This isn't enough."

But the gospel invites us to ask a different question.

Instead of “Why didn't God give us what we expected?"

We can ask "What has God already given us?" and "What could happen if we put it together?"

Because that's what God does.

God takes what is divided and makes it one.

God takes what looks like scarcity and invites us to discover what becomes possible when we share with one another.

The miracle isn't always that God suddenly gives us more.

Sometimes the miracle is that God teaches us to see what we already have differently.

The four apples are still four apples.

But maybe four apples aren't the whole story when we are willing to say, "I don't have much, but I have this."

And sometimes that's where God starts.

So today, I want us to remember the sticks.

Two sticks representing two different histories and identities.

And God says, put them together because they are stronger together.

Paul reminds us of our unity in Christ.

We don't have to be the same.

We don't even have to have the hopes or answers.

We must only be willing to make every effort to find peace and faithfully put what we have into God's hands together.

And maybe that is our invitation today.

When God's provision doesn't look like what we expected...

don't give up. Look again.

When the orchard doesn't produce the apples...

look again.

When the church doesn't look like it used to...

look again.

When the future doesn't look like the past...

look again.

When you think you don't have enough...

look again.

Instead of asking what do we do without something, ask how can God use what I have?

This week I want to invite each of you to spend some time in prayer and meditation thanking God for what you have, and asking how God might be able to use those gifts, talents, and resources to bring abundance to the Church.

Because maybe what God is asking of us isn't to produce more apples.

Maybe God is asking us to think creatively so we can discover what else can become a pie.

Maybe God is asking us to gather our sticks together.

Maybe God is asking us to become creative with grace.

And maybe the miracle isn't waiting somewhere out there for us.

Maybe the miracle is already sitting at the table.

In your hands.

In my hands.

In our hands together.

Because when we put those hands together God can do something with them.

In a few moments we will be having communion together, as we come to this table today, May we see the strength that Ezekiel saw in unity,

May we become the people that Paul describes,

Whether we come with plenty.

or feeling like we have very little.

Whether we are celebrating or grieving.

Hopeful or worried about what comes next.

But we all come to and are welcomed at the same table.

The table of grace.

Because at Christ's table, we don't come because we have everything we need.

We come because Christ is enough.

Bringing all that we have and trusting that God can make it enough.

So bring your stick.

Bring your apples, or your tomatoes, your zucchini, your baking skills…

Bring whatever you have.

And put it in God's hands.

Because we may not know exactly what God is going to do with it.

But we know this, God is still gathering.

God is still working.

God is still providing.

And God is still calling us to become one,

one with Christ

and one with each other.

Amen.

*We learned during worship that there are actually 5 apples!