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"Does God Go On Vacation?" - The Rev. Vicky Ney
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July 8, 2007 “Does God Go On Vacation?” The Rev. Victoria Ney
Text: I Kings 18:19-39, & Psalm 121
A Sunday School teacher gave her class an assignment to write a letter to God.
Little Veronica wrote this letter:
“Dear God; In Sunday School we learned about all the things you do. But who does them when you’re on vacation?”
This question and other similar ones have been on the minds of people since the beginning of time. We believers trust in an omnipotent, all-powerful God. But I’m sure each one of us has thought of this question: What happens if God goes on vacation, takes a nap or even blinks?
This is a scary thought—even at a time when our vacations may not mean complete separation from work anymore. With the advent of cell phones, fax and overnight delivery, most people aren’t ever very far from their jobs at any given moment.
I’ve had experience with this: One summer, when my husband Richard was working in the corporate world, we had a Fed Ex guy deliver an overnight package of papers to our chartered sail boat while we were docked in Annapolis harbor—I was not happy, but that’s another story!
Still, the idea that God may not be on the job every single moment is a frightening concept. The ancient writer of Psalm 121 wanted to put our minds at rest.
Although the psalm is short in length, Psalm 121 has been long on influence. It even contributed a phrase to the Apostle’s Creed (“maker of heaven and earth.” V. 2)
I suspect that except for Psalm 23, which shares the same fundamental message, Psalm 121 is probably recited from memory very often, especially when people of faith reach for words of assurance when they go through difficulties in their lives.
It’s a beautiful psalm. Great images. The words reassure us and tell us that we are safe. But I’m not sure that these words are enough for us 21st Century Christians. If it were written today, some people might feel the need to change the beginning words.
Let me tell you what I mean.
“I will lift up mine eyes to the hills from whence cometh my help?”
Some folks might want to answer that with “My help comes from my stock portfolio. It makes me feel secure. Sure these are uncertain days in the Dow Jones and Nasdaq. But generally I’m in really solid stocks, ones that don’t fluctuate much in either a bull or bear market. Besides I’m in it for the long haul. I can afford to let it all sit there for when I need it some day.”
Or some people might say, “from whence cometh my help? My help comes from my spouse. We’ve been through so much already—good and bad times. We have a solid marriage. Shared interest. Lots of trust and love.”
Or there’s another possible answer from which help comes— My help comes from my best friend. He or she never lets me down. I can tell them anything. I can even call in the middle of the night if I need to. They’ve seen me through tough times already. He or she is a reliable, true-blue friend.
Here’s another popular answer—“My help comes from my job. I work hard—long hours. I have longevity in the company. Security. May boss needs me. He knows I put my job even before my family. I’m a team player.”
Or how about an answer that depends more on ourselves than other people. “My help comes from my intellect. I think through my problems. I don’t so anything without careful consideration. I have an education—top-notch training or a college degree. No one can take your education or experience away from you.”
Or one last thought—“my help comes from my church. I’m an elder. I served on the Board of Deacons. I’m there for every covered dish dinner. I’ve taught Sunday School. Everyone in our church looks out for each other.”
Now please don’t think for an instant that I’m putting down family, friends, jobs or even this wonderful church family. All of those things are important in our lives.
But we all know that none of them have any guarantees. Financial resources are no sure security for life. Beloved spouses get sick and die. Sometimes they even get up and walk away. Every now and then a friend has to move away. Sometimes there’s a disagreement between friends or life circumstances change. Jobs come and go. Companies get sold. Management changes. Younger workers and fresh ideas become more important. I don’t even need to tell you that people in churches can let you down.
Finances, relationships, and self-reliance are important in life. But what I’m suggesting is that if you’re depending on any of those things, you may have created your own god.
Scripture clearly tells us “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” That commandment is right up there at the top of the list. God must have felt it was pretty important. It’s not just in the top 10 Commandments—it’s number one on the list!
I don’t think God placed it there because God felt insecure or was on some ego trip.
I think God placed it there so we wouldn’t be barking up the wrong tree—wasting our time and putting our energy into trusting something—or someone—that ultimately can disappoint us and cause us pain.
Our first lesson with Elijah and the prophets of Baal illustrated that point.
The children of Israel had been lured into worshipping other gods. It looked like a great religion. It was very “down-to-earth,” so to speak. It had gods you could look at and even touch. It had fun worship services. A lot of native people in Israel worshipped Baal and Asherah—and they seemed to be doing just fine.
Elijah challenged the people of God to take stand—to follow whoever was the true God. Elijah set up a contest to see whether Baal or Yahweh was the true God.
As you heard, the 400 prophets of Baal set up their altar and sacrifice and waited for Baal to send the fire. They raved all afternoon, but no one answered them. Elijah couldn’t help himself. He started to taunt them. He said, “Shout louder. Maybe Baal is busy or sleeping or on vacation.”
Their god was silent because it wasn’t real. Elijah knew with certainty that Yahweh, our God, is real and alive and ever-present and responsive.
When it was Elijah’s turn in the contest, he prayed, “Let it be known today that you are God. Let the people know this and turn their hearts back to you.”
There was a mighty demonstration of God’s power that day. The fire came from heaven and burned up the sacrifice—and the entire altar, water and dirt. It was pretty amazing. There was so mistaking who the true God and who answered prayers.
Well, what does this old story have to do with us? We don’t bow ourselves to the ground in front of statues of animals. We don’t dance around and cut ourselves.
The truth is the gods we may be tempted to follow are not idols of wood and stone, but they can be just as false and dangerous, because they can cause us to depend on something other than God.
Power, status, appearance, or material possession can become our god if we devote our lives to them. When we reach times of crisis and desperately call out to these gods, there will only be silence. They can offer no true answers, no guidance, no wisdom.
Make no mistake, our help can only come from God.
The psalmist said this with authority in his voice. The writer is someone who has obviously experienced a lot of life’s challenges. If the writer was indeed King David (that is still debated—some scholars say yes, others say no, some say he wrote several of the Psalms) but if the writer of this particular psalm was David, we know that David certainly had been through a lot of challenges—some that were not his fault, and some for which he had sole responsibility. But what comes through so clearly in this Psalm is that the writer is sure of God’s care and love. The writer has experienced it first hand. The writer is not simply expressing powerful wishes for some divine blessing; he is someone who has felt the blessing of God’s constant care.
The Psalmist tells us that we are promised the ever-vigilant protection of God.
We are promised the constant presence of God. God stands guard day and night. Someone once said, “You can sleep soundly tonight. God is on duty.” The Psalmist would have agreed with that.
The writer used the word “keep” many times in this psalm. That wasn’t because he was some primitive person who had a limited vocabulary. He used the word “keep” repeatedly because he wanted to be emphatic about the scope of God’s protection. God would keep him. God would protect him from all harm. (v. 7)
The psalmist invites people of every generation to live fully in the present on the basis of this promise. This potent promises, “I will be with you”—“I will keep you”—are found throughout the Bible. It’s not a promise just for Bible heroes such as Moses or Jacob or Joshua. This promise is delivered to each one of us—ordinary believers here in Springfield.
We are sent back into the world to live and work. But we have the assurance that the Lord of the world is our escort. We live under God’s care.
In practical terms, that doesn’t mean that we will have a life cushioned from all unpleasantness. The ancient Hebrews, to whom this Psalm was addressed, had plenty to contend with. If scholars are correct, this was written down after Israel had been destroyed after losing a war and the people exiled to Babylon. Even the early Christians who read this psalm lived with incredible hardships and persecution. We struggle today—illness, death in our families, loneliness, job and financial problems, broken families, and just the busyness of life, trying to keep it all together.
I realize this psalm has beautiful words. But they are no magic potion for instant peace and calm. How do we know for sure that God is our helper and our keeper?
As people of God living after the time of Christ, we have a greater insight on this. We know that God loves us. God didn’t just say, “I love you.” We know that God didn’t just love us at a distance or only in some spiritual way. God did something about it. God came into the world in Jesus. God used a physical body like ours to show us love and to show us how to love.
God didn’t say, “I’ll do this and that, and that’s all.” God never said, “I’ll do this, IF you’ll do that.” God set no limits. And when that meant dying for us, God in Christ went to the cross for us. Nothing was held back whatever the cost.
God’s love is complete. There is no time when God’s love stops. There is no time when the loving care stops. God does not go on vacation. The Apostle Paul, in Romans, said it this way: No place, no time, no circumstance will ever be able to separate us from God’s loving care.
Will you pray with me?
Dear God, we thank you for your loving words of assurance that we find in this Psalm. We thank you that those words of love and promise were made flesh in Jesus. It is fear, Lord, that leads us to trust in things that will disappoint us and hurt us. Take that fear away and help us to trust you with our whole heart. Help us to live fully in the present—right now—remembering that you are always beside us, guarding and keeping us in your strong powerful hands. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen. |
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