Homecoming Celebration Theresa Hoover Memorial UMC
Theme: Isaiah 40:31, “But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.”
The Message Bible
27-31 Why would you ever complain, O Jacob,
or, whine, Israel, saying,
“God has lost track of me.
He doesn’t care what happens to me”?
Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening?
God doesn’t come and go. God lasts.
He’s the Creator of all you can see or imagine.
He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath.
And he knows everything, inside and out.
He energizes those who get tired,
gives fresh strength to dropouts.
For even young people tire and drop out,
young folk in their prime stumble and fall.
But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.
They spread their wings and soar like eagles,
They run and don’t get tired,
they walk and don’t lag behind.
Greetings, brothers and sisters in Christ; it is great to be home. Even though social distancing, my heart still feels the rhythm of life that goes on at the Theressa Hoover Memorial UMC and in its various ministries.
Forty years is a long time. I met the Hoover congregation when it was in its teenage years. Better Community Developers was just a staff of one and a hard-working board. I remember Paw Paw’s Daycare, the Saving Station, the New Life Shelter, YIP, and Safe Haven. I remember the dreams of housing development. So, many things were in the visionary stages. How many of you remember plays, national conference during the Crack Cocaine pandemic “The Death of a Race” with Dick Gregory and then-Governor Bill Clinton, who became president of the US? Rev. Robinson, pastor emeritus, has dined with dignitaries and cut grass, dug trenches, etc. Our current pastor has been apart of the journey alongside PawPaw.
Yes, Hoover and I go a long way back…. I think bloodstone says it best…
You and me, (Hoover) girl (uh-huh)
Go a long way back
And I’m so proud
I’m so proud
Oh, I was about to forget – we are in church….
I just stop by today to testify that the journey of 40 years has not been easy, but it has been worth every tear shed, every exhausting day of work, every life changed, every meal prepared. It has been worth every betrayal and every bridge across over troubled waters. The church has lived a glorious past, but I came today to tell you about the promise of a brighter future.
The biblical verse chosen from this time of celebration comes from the prophet Isaiah. In Isaiah, the 40th chapter, we witness a shift from a conversation of Israel’s punishment and struggle and move into the narrative of the end of its exile under Babylonian captivity. Chapter 40 is the beginning of the announcement of a vision of hope for the future. It proclaims the idea of a New Jerusalem.
Isaiah is proclaiming trouble is over; you can return home. Church, you can return home. Now, home is not necessarily a physical local.
Home
When I think of home
I think of a place where there’s love overflowing
I wish I was home
I wish I was back there with the things I been knowing
If you’re listening God
Please don’t make it hard to know.
If we should believe in the things that we see
Tell us, should we run away
Should we try and stay
Or would it be better just to let things be?
Living here, in this brand new world
Might be a fantasy
But it taught me to love
So it’s real, real to me.
And I’ve learned
That we must look inside our hearts
To find a world full of love.
Like yours
Like me
Like home…
Some of you listening this morning have been dealing with a season of hardship. You are longing for a place called home.
You may have interpreted your trial as a punishment from God. Some of you think you have brought your trouble upon yourself – assuming that you deserve to be suffering. But, I came to tell you about a God who sits high and looks low…a God unlike the God your judgment which you may have become comfortable knowing and ran away from because you deem yourself unworthy.
I am here to tell you about a God of another chance, a God who continually works on behalf of those whom God loves. The God that never runs out of grace. The God who journey with you.
Isaiah was talking about you when He proclaimed those.
(Those) – used to identify a specific person observed or heard by the speaker. Therefore, it includes anyone of you.
Any one of you who trust in the Lord – church, Do you trust in the Lord?
Old folk used to sing, I am going trust in the Lord, I am going trust in the Lord, I am going trust in the Lord until I die….I am going trust in the Lord, I am going trust in the Lord, I will trust in the Lord until I die.
Oh, Children, do you trust in the old. There is a promise for those who trust.
If you trust – God will renew your strength.
If you trust – you will Soar and Run (Not grow weary)
If you trust – shall Walk (not faint)
These are not empty promises. They are not lofty ideals. Because the promise is not that you won’t encounter problems. It does not say that the road will be easy, but the contract is that if you put in the work and trust God that you will finish the raise.
Soaring and running are not easy tasks. The eagle must fight against the force of gravity and utilize aerodynamics to its advantage. The eagle must build its wing strength from baby eaglets and develop into skilled adult birds of prey.
Runners must build endurance. They accomplish this by running, not sitting on the couch, eating cheesecake, and watching others run.
There is work to be done. Trusting is not only waiting to see what happens. It is the participatory work of doing and leaning on the power of God to sustain you.
Don Wilson 