Watch Video: This link, https://www.youtube.com/live/8-hVxnA5QvY?si=C17X96i2Qfa1G2BI&t=2391
goes to the live stream of this sermon.
"I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon[a] of the church at Cenchreae, 2 so that you may welcome her in the Lord, as is fitting for the saints, and help her in whatever she may require from you, for she has been a benefactor of many and of myself as well.
3 Greet Prisca and Aquila, my coworkers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but also all the churches of the gentiles. 5 Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert[b] in Asia for Christ. 6 Greet Mary, who has worked very hard for you. 7 Greet Andronicus and Junia,[c] my fellow Israelites who were in prison with me; they are prominent among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was. 8 Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our coworker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. 10 Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. 11 Greet my fellow Israelite Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. 12 Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and greet his mother—a mother to me also. 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers and sisters who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. 16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you."
For all his flaws, Paul named names. In today’s reading, Paul names twenty-six people who were essential to the success of his and early Christian ministry. Phoebe, Priscilla, Aquila, Mary, Junia, Tryphaena, and Tryphosa are just a few of those named. There is no shortage of good material to preach on Phoebe as an early female minister and the swapping of Junia to Junias and then back to Junia, but I hope a word on those who are overlooked will be faithful to Paul and any I might miss today.
I cannot tell you how blessed we are to have a service full of young faces. At a time when most churches are only able to ask themselves, “what do we have to do to have kids or teens here?” we get to ask “what do we do with our teens?” I’ll start by following Paul’s lead and naming some names. Do you know Aiden, Amelia M, Amelia V, Aristella Grace, Aryanna or Ava? Have you seen Buck, Caroline, or Charlie, CJ, Delaney, or Eleanor? Have you heard from Ella or Esther, Hope or Isla, Islalucia, Jamison or Jay? Do you know Jay from Jonathan, Kalya from Kiran, Kate from Liana, or Lilly from Lydia? We have a Magnolia and Malley, a Marian and Noah, as well as Nora, Oscar, Parker, and Raleigh. There is still room for Rowan and Sabine, Sam and Sarah, as well as Savannah, Tessa, and Zoey. Paul named 26 names. I hope you will offer me grace and stretch to know those named. Forty-one teens who are the foundation of our church. Not later, but now.
Instead of getting right to the question of “what do we do with our kids or teens,” maybe we should refer to experts. A few weeks ago I showed up to a Matins rehearsal, produced a piece of paper, and told them I would preach on whatever they wrote down and gave the most votes to. I will have you know sins, friendship, Taylor Swift, academic pressure, navigating young adulthood, Adam and Eve, and connection between worship and music ranked lowest, with one to three votes. Our Sunday School teachers will be glad to know that Jesus and Noah’s ark almost made the cut, with 10 and 9 votes respectively. In the end it came down to Morgan Wallen, science/the big bang/creationism/the bible, or youth and mental illness, with 11, 19, and 20 votes respectively. I wished there was enough time to cover each of these in a sermon, but since youth and mental illness won out, starting today, Pastor Melody and I invite all our teens to meet in the youth room from 10:10 to 10:50am every Sunday so they can have their hot takes and concerns heard. And we will do our best to respond. Maybe they can start by telling us who Morgan Wallen is.
Votes were anonymous so I do not know which twenty Matins voted for “youth and mental illness,” but I want to start by saying this. You are not alone. You belong here. You are loved more than you will ever know and nothing you say or do can change that. If you have experienced or are experiencing stress, anxiety, or depression, know this is a safe space and every pastor, parent, and volunteer has all the time in the would to hear you, to be with you, and walk with you. But I cannot say all this and pretend it is abnormal or unexpected that a teen might report stress, depression, or anxiety. Teens, if you look at the world and feel that something is off or wrong, then you are smarter than us adults who accepted the world we were handed and said, “that’s just how it is.”
If we keep on getting reports that our young people are experiencing spikes in depression and anxiety, all exacerbated by the pandemic, it is not sufficient to talk about how things were different in our days or bemoan newer generations going soft. It’s a pitiful prize to pride oneself on suffering better than another, something we should not except for ourselves, or attempt to hand to another. I want to know if our teens know they are made in God’s image, that they are wonderfully and fearfully made, that they are loved as they are, right now, not just for what they might be. You are people, not products. I am sorry we live in a world that forgets that as soon as you leave these doors.
I am worried for our teens. Our graduating seniors and nine grades below them will be forever defined by doing school while in a pandemic, as if puberty wasn’t hard enough. The generation before me was shocked by Columbine, but they did not go to school asking when, not if, they might face an active shooter. What they know, what they have experienced is not normal, but it is the reality they have known. They have known more extraordinary than ordinary, yet are given no respite, no pause. There is no room for them to be ordinary, whatever that is.
Right before us are some of the smartest kids in the state. But smart isn’t good enough anymore. That’s why you also have exceptional athletes, musicians, dancers, vocalists, probably some influencers, all with weeks planned and executed with the same care and stakes as a NASA launch prep.
Parents, I don’t know how you do it. Even if a teen has transport, families know that organizing, preparing, and executing tight schedules, is a necessary evil. And it is no one’s fault. If you don’t burn a candle on both ends you don’t make varsity squads or all state ensembles. And we all know if you don’t make these, or make up for it, with volunteer hours, charisma, good grades, and more extracurriculars, someone else will get the scholarship. Or the college you have pinned hopes on will send the dreaded rejection letter.
If you don’t believe me, ask any of our teens their schedules or what they do. It takes practice, but by they time they are seniors they will know what to say (or what not to say) to fit themselves into an equation for colleges and jobs, which degrees will get nods or the condescending “good luck with that,” how many AP credits and volunteer hours they need for scholarships or to get better placement, to be noticed, to be recognized. And all of this happens in a vacuum where every action, every minute of growth is under the microscope of theirs or someone else’s phone. We do our best to tell teens that many things are not the end of the world. But that’s not true. That is true here, but that is not how life works out there.
Out there, value is not assumed, it has to be proven, and multi-billion-dollar industries composed of private coaches, ACT/SAT tutors, travel planners for college essays, countless non-profits, and enough extracurriculars to dot out the sun exist to make every beautiful child something more than ordinary.
Instead of asking our teens or kids “are you okay,” the first question out of our mouths is, “so, where are you going to college” or “do you know what you are doing next?” We would frown at someone who spent all day looking at a plant and shouting, “grow!” “Grow!” “Grow!” but our society does not bat any eye when that is the dominant approach to that which we value most. This is wrong. It’s not okay. And maybe that’s why too many cannot say they are okay. No career, no school, no accolade, is worth what we are sacrificing. This is the world we know, but it’s not the one God calls us to. There must be a different path, some trail where “no matter who you are, or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.” I believe that is here.
I propose we center everything Plymouth does on caring for our teens, kids, and their families. We must care for our teens now because the world is already judging what it can do with them later, and I don’t trust any market will care about them as much as we do. I believe everything we need to change the world is in this room, because God is with us, and we have more than twenty-six people to work this out. We can do this by assuming we are people of God now, rather than later. And we need to do this because we are already collectively bearing the costs of generation after generation being used and then discarded.
In the face of a big, scary world, it is enough to be the church. Do not take for granted that this is the only place one consistently hears they have a value independent of their net worth and accolades, unaffected by failure. The outside world doesn’t value life or love. All that cannot be measured or secured is considered weakness. But we know better. We can make it better.
Are you worried about climate change? Talk to our teens. They’re probably three steps ahead on action and would love some support. Are you worried about democracy, gun violence, and systemic inequality? Good, talk to our teens. But it is a two-way street. Teens, we need you to talk to us. We know you are busy but, instead of rushing out the door after the service, what if you lingered for one conversation, learned a new face and name? Our boards and committees are dying to have you be part of them. Ever since you were confirmed you’ve been able to be a part of them. Do you realize you would never have to worry about silver chord hours again if you just worked with one board?
If you are looking at colleges, why not talk to the many different alumni here? Challenge us. If you have a game, concert, or event you want boosted, let us know so congregants can show up. If you are worried about jobs, tests, life, talk to us. Let us look at your resume, help you prep for interviews, edit essays, or work through calculus, gov, and AP Biology with you. I’m about to get a lot of emails from congregants who want to help you out, but I cannot read your minds. You have my email, and I am available seven days a week to grab coffee and chat. God is calling you, asking you to be part of this. Don’t count yourself out.
There is an astonishing number of doctors, lawyers, professors, trades people, politicians, and many other professions represented here. Can any of you reach out to our teens or parents to help with internships, with mentorship, or even with jobs? The outside world can craft competent professionals but what we are missing are people of integrity, people who care for others and are willing to be gentle or work with an ethic greater than a bottom line.
What would it mean to have $1000 or more go to every high schooler after they graduate, to help with school, books, and costs? The outside world puts a cost on such things. At $10 an hour, that is investing in 100 hours of each teen’s time. I wonder what 100 hours of time with our teens would do to change us and them. What about non-paid hours, for time we could give to help with writing, with free tutoring, with coaching, with mentoring, asking ourselves again and again how can we keep our future here?
This isn’t to overlook the good we are doing and have done. Our Matins director, Ted Brimeyer, continues a proud tradition of excellent music and fellowship for our teens. Pastor Melody and Samantha Whalen have added creative arts camps, reformatted confirmation, grown Sunday School roles, and brought out talents among those called to work our young ones. Chris, Sohee, and Beth Anne as well as our ensemble directors deliver the gift of bells rung by young hands and voices from preschool to high school raised in praise. Dedicated volunteers have reintroduced steppingstones, become OWLS facilitators, been confirmation guides, and matins chaperones. Parents have stepped up again and again to bear the brunt of teen programming this past year, and make this possible with every mile they drive, every moment they give. But we cannot thrive on paid staff and parents alone. Everyone is connected to the health of our kids and teens, whether you are aunts and uncles, mentors, grandparents, or even just taxpayers, your health and wellness depends on our kids and teens being okay, being cared for, loved, and nurtured into disciples for life, not just next steps.
The outside world is always demanding more and more time from our families. If we just want kids and teens here so we can see them, we are just another voice in a cacophony of noise. To be more than noise, we need to show why we are different. You know this better than I do. After all, many of you have shown up, week after week, longer than I have been here. Tell your story, invite our teens to your boards and committees, let them know what you didn’t know at fifteen or eighteen. You don’t have to know every name at once, admittedly I am still working on it. Showing up is the first step. If you want to get involved, but do not know how, no worries, any of the pastors would love to help you discern your call. Our emails and phone numbers are in the bulletin. Give us a call, pick our brains, and dream with us.
We cannot delegate this to a board or a committee. We need every member involved because this will be what makes or breaks us. I am inviting each of you to answer this call. I pray you will have faith and let the Holy Spirit help you respond.
Comments