"Express Yourself”
Preached Thursday, July 7, 2023 at Camp Asbury, Communion Service
This week’s theme was “Express Yourself.” How have you expressed yourself this week? (*Answers*)
Right - there are lots of ways we can express ourselves and share who we feel we are, at our core, with others. We can paint and sing and dance and write. We can also use our words: telling people about who you are, what you like, what you think is important, what you care about, how you want to be treated. We can also express who we are through our actions: the activities we are involved in, how we help other people, how we treat them.
Sometimes, when we are young, it can be hard to express ourselves…or we can only express ourselves through art or the music we listen to or the books we like to read…because we are still figuring out WHO we are. And that’s OKAY. Finding out who you are, at your core, who God made you to be, can be a life-long journey.
Now, I’m going to share a quote with you that was from Henri Nouwen - Henri Nouwen was a college professor, very esteemed, very respected - and he actually gave that all up to go and live and work in a community for people with profound mental and physical disabilities. And in doing that, he found out more about who he was and who God created him to be.
So, I am going to read this quote to you and for many of you, it’s going to be big words and go over your heads - but I’ll read it for the counselors and older youth among you and then I’ll say it again, but change the words so we can all understand what he’s trying to say.
So he said: “For me to be a saint means to be myself…Therefore the problem of sanctity and salvation is in fact the problem of finding out who I am and discovering my true self.”
Okay, so what he’s saying is this: For me to be the best person that I could possibly be…I just have to be myself - who God created me to be. That’s all that God wants for me - to discover my true self and to be the me that God created for me to be.
And the me that God created me to be - and the you that God created you to be - that’s nothing less than a beloved child of God. YOU are loved by God. And because God created you, you are capable of great love. You can love God with all that you are. And you can love other people with all that you are. You might show and express that love differently. Right? Because each of us is unique, and, it doesn’t change that, at your core, each of you was created to be who you are and to love others - and you are Loved by God for exactly WHO you are.
Our Bible passage I read tonight says it like this: You are light! And you are meant to shine! No one would light a candle and then put a basket over it so you couldn’t see it! But sometimes, we hide who we are. We can think of it like a mummy, wrapped in clothes - or maybe like a mummy Halloween costume, a kid with toilet paper wrapped around them - we call these layers that hide who we are, that hide our light like a candle under a basket, we call them false selves.
Because sometimes, we hide who we are. Because sometimes, the world tells us we should be something or someone else: cooler, prettier, more athletic, less weird…and so we try to hide who we really are and act in ways that don’t ring true to us. Or when we are mean to others, or don’t treat people with love…or sometimes mean to ourselves and don’t treat ourselves with love…that’s not who God created us to be. Or maybe at times, when you’re growing up, you try on different selves like trying on a new coat. Cause you’re trying to find out what feels right to you - and that’s an important part of growing up. But those versions of ourselves that don’t feel right to us, and cause us to not treat ourselves and others with love - those are false selves, the basket hiding our light, the layers wrapped around a mummy, hiding who we really are.
And so, each of us is called to live a life that is true to who God created us to be. And I can say with 1000 percent confidence that God created each of you to be a wonderful, amazing, and loving person. Each of you is unique. Each of you is one of a kind. AND, God created each of you because God loves you. And God created each of you to love other people. How you express yourself and how you express that love, that will change, but at your core, God just wants you to be who God created you to be.
And when you come to this table tonight, I will read the story of Jesus and what he did for us, and we will eat bread dipped in juice…and at the center of this meal is that message: You are Loved by God. And you, ALL OF YOU, who you are at the core, who God created you to be, your true self, who you really are…God loves and accepts you and you are welcomed here at this table and welcomed into the family of God. And even when we hide who we are, even when we d you were created by the God who is Love, for Love. And God loves you.
And this table, this table is a sign of God's Love. In the United Methodist Church - and Camp Asbury is a United Methodist summer camp - we say we have an OPEN table because ALL are invited to the table. We welcome anyone to it. We tell the story of Jesus and we share bread and juice together to remember all that Jesus did for us. And we welcome all, because God welcomes all. Because God loves all. All of everyone - and all for you, all of who you are, even all of who you aren't but sometimes try to be - God knows it all. God sees you all. AND, God still loves you. And will always love you.
So as you find out who you are in life. And as you work to express yourself, remember that you are called to be your truest self, who God created you to be, and you are free to express yourself and your love for God and other people - just as God created you to be.
Amen.
So he said: “For me to be a saint means to be myself…Therefore the problem of sanctity and salvation is in fact the problem of finding out who I am and discovering my true self.”
Okay, so what he’s saying is this: For me to be the best person that I could possibly be…I just have to be myself - who God created me to be. That’s all that God wants for me - to discover my true self and to be the me that God created for me to be.
And the me that God created me to be - and the you that God created you to be - that’s nothing less than a beloved child of God. YOU are loved by God. And because God created you, you are capable of great love. You can love God with all that you are. And you can love other people with all that you are. You might show and express that love differently. Right? Because each of us is unique, and, it doesn’t change that, at your core, each of you was created to be who you are and to love others - and you are Loved by God for exactly WHO you are.
Our Bible passage I read tonight says it like this: You are light! And you are meant to shine! No one would light a candle and then put a basket over it so you couldn’t see it! But sometimes, we hide who we are. We can think of it like a mummy, wrapped in clothes - or maybe like a mummy Halloween costume, a kid with toilet paper wrapped around them - we call these layers that hide who we are, that hide our light like a candle under a basket, we call them false selves.
Because sometimes, we hide who we are. Because sometimes, the world tells us we should be something or someone else: cooler, prettier, more athletic, less weird…and so we try to hide who we really are and act in ways that don’t ring true to us. Or when we are mean to others, or don’t treat people with love…or sometimes mean to ourselves and don’t treat ourselves with love…that’s not who God created us to be. Or maybe at times, when you’re growing up, you try on different selves like trying on a new coat. Cause you’re trying to find out what feels right to you - and that’s an important part of growing up. But those versions of ourselves that don’t feel right to us, and cause us to not treat ourselves and others with love - those are false selves, the basket hiding our light, the layers wrapped around a mummy, hiding who we really are.
And so, each of us is called to live a life that is true to who God created us to be. And I can say with 1000 percent confidence that God created each of you to be a wonderful, amazing, and loving person. Each of you is unique. Each of you is one of a kind. AND, God created each of you because God loves you. And God created each of you to love other people. How you express yourself and how you express that love, that will change, but at your core, God just wants you to be who God created you to be.
And when you come to this table tonight, I will read the story of Jesus and what he did for us, and we will eat bread dipped in juice…and at the center of this meal is that message: You are Loved by God. And you, ALL OF YOU, who you are at the core, who God created you to be, your true self, who you really are…God loves and accepts you and you are welcomed here at this table and welcomed into the family of God. And even when we hide who we are, even when we d you were created by the God who is Love, for Love. And God loves you.
And this table, this table is a sign of God's Love. In the United Methodist Church - and Camp Asbury is a United Methodist summer camp - we say we have an OPEN table because ALL are invited to the table. We welcome anyone to it. We tell the story of Jesus and we share bread and juice together to remember all that Jesus did for us. And we welcome all, because God welcomes all. Because God loves all. All of everyone - and all for you, all of who you are, even all of who you aren't but sometimes try to be - God knows it all. God sees you all. AND, God still loves you. And will always love you.
So as you find out who you are in life. And as you work to express yourself, remember that you are called to be your truest self, who God created you to be, and you are free to express yourself and your love for God and other people - just as God created you to be.
Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment