Sermon for June 9, 2024
Psalm 145; Mark 1:12-13; Matthew 6:33-34; John 1:1-3, 14
Rev. Karl-John N. Stone
The great theologian Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430) described nature as the “first book of God”—meaning that before the Bible was written, God was already writing (so to speak) the revelation of himself in the things of God’s creation. Others describe nature as “the second book of God”, with the Bible being the first. Either way, as Christians we recognize the authority of the scriptures, and we recognize that the Holy Spirit has been continually revealing in the natural world who God is, ever since creation began.
Wild Church is about incorporating nature into our worship of God, and seeing ourselves as being in unity with all God has made. Jesus did this himself. For example, he retreated to the wilderness to pray, and the wild animals accompanied him there. He could have prayed anywhere, but sometimes he chose to pray out in nature (as we see in Mark 1:12-13).
Many people talk about feeling God’s presence, or a sense of spirituality, when they are in nature, in the “real world” that is all around us, and in which all of God’s creatures dwell. For us to grow in our spirituality, we need to grow in our awareness of reality, for “the Word became flesh and dwelled among us” (as the Gospel of John tells us). This means that Christ is present in the real world we live in (a.k.a Christ is present in “reality”). Awareness of reality can come through acknowledging your internal emotions, thoughts, and motivations. Or, awareness of reality can be experiencing first hand, or learning more about, the challenges our neighbors are going through locally or around the world. Awareness of reality can also come by seeking a greater connection to God’s creation in the natural world around us. Today we are going to focus on seeking a greater connection to the natural world around us.
John Muir, the famous naturalist (who came from Wisconsin by way of Scotland), and who is known as “the Prophet of Awe” wrote: “In every walk with Nature, one receives far more than he seeks.” This echoes the way Psalm 145:16 gives praise to God: “You open your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.” Both John Muir and the Psalmist point us toward the gifts God gives when we connect more with reality in the natural world.
Jesus said: “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Matthew 6:33-34). In these verses from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was teaching us to be attentive to reality, to the things around us today, both to what is troubled, and what is righteous. And we can find both in the natural world.
I invite you to spend the next ten or fifteen minutes becoming more aware of reality through the natural world here on the grounds of House of Prayer, either on your own or with another person. Since, in this Wild Church experiment, we are seeking to “HOP outside the box” a bit in a way that might be unfamiliar, we invite you to commit yourself to a spirit of creativity or even playfulness for the next 10 or 15 minutes, as we try this experiment of “Dwelling in God’s Creation”. And now I’ll give you some guidelines:
Open your heart and mind to whatever God may give you to experience through nature.
As you sit, or walk around, notice the natural world around us, and the effects nature is having.
Spend two or three minutes noticing: What things do you see?
Spend two or three minutes noticing: What things do you hear?
Spend two or three minutes noticing: What things do you feel?
Ask yourself: Which other times in my life have I noticed similar things to what I have seen, heard, or felt today?
After you have gone through these times of noticing, ask: How might God be present within what you have noticed, or experienced? (If you’re not sure, that’s ok. Just ponder it today.)
Then find a friendly-looking person and share one thing about your experience today, and return your thanksgiving to the God who provided it. Amen.