United Church of Pittsford

Acts 9:10-19 (The Message)

There is an ancient Chinese legend that tells of a small group of elderly, extremely cultured, aristocratic gentlemen who met regularly to exchange bits of wisdom and sip exquisite concoctions of exotic tea. They took turns hosting the gatherings and each gentleman acquired what he believed to be the very finest and most costly varieties of tea and then, created his own exotic blend, which he hoped would arouse the admiration of his guests.

When the most honored, respected, and distinguished member of the group hosted the gathering, he served his chosen blend with unprecedented ceremony, gently and methodically measuring each delicate leaf from a tiny gold laden chest. Upon sampling the master's tea, his venerable colleagues strained to out do one another in expressing their praise for the exquisite color, aroma, and flavor of the remarkable tea their host so graciously served.

Their host most humbly, politely, and appreciatively bowed before each of their elaborate compliments and then responded, "My dear friends, the tea you have found so extraordinarily delightful is the very same tea our peasants drink each day. My hope is that this exercise will remind all of us that the good things in life are not always the rarest, or the most costly."

The Lord God is present in the ordinary . . . in the ordinary, average, mundane, everyday objects, events, and people that compose each one of our lives. And most of the time God's extraordinary actions in this world take place in and through the ordinary, the average, the mundane, the everyday!

This morning we read about Ananias, a faithful follower of Christ, residing in the city of Damascus. He was just an ordinary, average person, no different from you or me, who became involved in an extraordinary event. He awoke one morning from a dream convinced that the Lord Jesus was compelling him to go to the home of a complete stranger and lay healing hands on the most feared enemy of their fledgling Christian fellowship and bless him as a welcome and accepted member of their community.

Back then, people believed divine revelation came through dreams. In Ananias's dream, he had issued a protest to such a dangerous and incomprehensive calling, but without explanation, the Lord had simply said, "Go!" So, in spite of his fears, with great resignation, and completely oblivious to what he was about to do, Ananias hesitantly marched off to ordain the Apostle Paul for a ministry that would change the world. Little did this common, ordinary, average, anonymous individual know at the time what a profound and earthshaking sequence of events the Lord God was about to initiate through him!

The Lord God is present in the ordinary . . . in the ordinary, average, mundane, everyday objects, events, and people and most of the time God's extraordinary actions in this world take place in and through the ordinary, the average, the mundane, the everyday objects, events, and people!

As is the custom in many Christian denominations, overseas missionaries are occasionally called back to this country to share their experiences, speak of their ministry, and attempt to raise funds to support their efforts. Such was the case with Rev. Dr. Henry Merriweather, a dedicated missionary in Sri Lanka.

The chairperson of the Foreign Mission Board scheduled a speaking tour that included a personal visit to an elderly woman who financially supported a full-time missionary serving in India completely on her own. Dr. Merriweather was given the woman's name, address, and a map to direct him to her home. He was surprised as he turned onto the street where the woman was suppose to be living. Considering her extremely generous giving he had expected a much more affluent neighborhood. It was so ordinary; lined with small, older homes, a number of them clearly in need of repair, squeezed together on tiny, often unkempt lots. The home he was directed to was plain, simple, orderly, neat, and clean; but far from exceptional. It was just a tiny bungalow!

Dr. Merriweather approached the front door, convinced that he had been given the wrong address. Hesitantly, he rang the doorbell and when the elderly woman answered the door she immediately welcomed him by name saying she had been informed of his visit, and was excitedly anticipating his arrival. As he sat with her at the kitchen table, sipping tea and discussing the situation in Sri Lanka, he could not help but notice the austere setting in which she lived. Finally, as gently as he could, he asked her how she was able to financially support a fellow missionary, completely on her own, on what appeared to be meager resources. She smiled, and said it was simply a matter of priorities!

A wealthy uncle had left her some valuable property in the city and she used all the income generated to support her missionary! "I'm just an ordinary person," she went on to say, "who had always wished to be a missionary but never possessed the God given talents necessary, nor the education required to fulfill my dream. But God gave me this property and it has enabled me to fulfill my dream in this manner and I couldn't be happier! I'm certainly nothing special," she concluded, "just an old woman doing what she can to fulfill a dream!"

The Lord God is present in the ordinary. . . in the ordinary, average, mundane, everyday objects, events, and people and most of the time God's extraordinary actions in this world take place in and through the ordinary, the average, the mundane, the everyday objects, events, and people!

Who are some of those ordinary, average, everyday people in your life; who have influenced, inspired, challenged, changed you? Actually, we are all just ordinary, average, everyday people; there's not a world famous character among us! However, each one of us, all of us, are channels of God's grace! Often, we are not even aware of how we are being used by God to touch the lives of others.

There was a woman in our church in Ohio, whose husband went out in their garage one morning to dispose of the garbage, had a massive heart attack, and dropped dead on the floor. After what seemed like an unusually long time without hearing from her husband, Betty went into the garage, and found him dead on the floor! Needless to say, she was overwhelmed with shock and grief! Another woman in that congregation, who had lost her husband to a long illness just a year before, took it upon herself to reach out to Betty.

Prior to Betty's loss, the two of them had only known each other from a distance but Julia understood, and so, reached out! She offered to give Betty a ride to church, to take her to the grocery store, she invited her to dinner, she went with her to the movies she simply sat with her and listened to her over a cup of coffee around the kitchen table. It took a number of calls to break through Betty's resistance but finally Betty relented, and allowed Julia to engage her as a supportive friend. Betty came to call Julia her "angel" from God; the one who got her through! Julia said she was just an ordinary person, nothing special, just doing what needed to be done; she understood, and so, she acted.

The Lord God is present in the ordinary . . . in the ordinary, average, mundane, everyday objects, events, and people and most of the time God's extraordinary actions in this world take place in and through the ordinary, the average, the mundane, the everyday objects, events, and people!

Amen.