This was a special Sunday worship as we celebrated the 100th birthday of Rose Mott
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Scripture Reading:
NRS Deuteronomy 32:1 Give ear, O
heavens, and I will speak; let the earth hear the words of my mouth. 2
May my teaching drop like the rain, my speech condense like the dew; like
gentle rain on grass, like showers on new growth. 3 For I will
proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God! 4 The
Rock, his work is perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God, without
deceit, just and upright is he;…7 Remember the days of old, consider
the years long past; ask your father, and he will inform you; your elders, and
they will tell you. 8 When the Most High apportioned the nations,
when he divided humankind, he fixed the boundaries of the peoples according to
the number of the gods;
Today we have
arrived at a mountaintop experience. I suspect that many of you are like me and
realize that this might well be a singular event in your lives as you help Rose
celebrate her 100th birthday. I thought it might be fun to spend a
minute exploring the world Rose was born into in 1915. The third battle the
Isonzo began today 100 years ago between the armies of Italy and
Austria-Hungary. Ty Cobb was batting 369 and had 96 stolen bases, Babe Ruth had
hit the first of his 714 home runs and the Boston Red Sox won the World Series
two weeks ago 100 years ago. Woodrow Wilson was the president and stamps cost $.02
and the 1 millionth Ford rolled off the assembly line. But for us, the most
important thing today is that Rose Mott was born in Mount Airy, Maryland. The
world has changed quite a bit since that moment 100 years in the past. People
move between places more and more quickly, money exchanges hands around the
globe as if there were no boundaries and we stand at the pinnacle of new
technologies that will propel us into the next 100 years. In Rose’s days we
have fought two world wars, the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War. We have
sent young people to the Middle East for several conflicts and some are still
there. We have sent people into space, landed a man on the moon and sent
satellites to the far reaches of the solar system. We have survived Y2K,
Watergate and now will certainly survive the Clinton-Trump escapades. We have
found cures for most of our childhood illnesses and learned much about the
human body. All in the last 100 years.
Our scripture
this morning is about remembering. Remembering who God is and how God works in
the world around us. Deuteronomy is one to the first five books of the Bible
and is part of the Pentateuch. The
Pentateuch refers to the first five books of the Bible. For the most part,
both Jewish and Christian tradition credit Moses with primary authorship
of the Pentateuch. These five books form the theological foundation of the
Bible. The word Pentateuch means "five vessels," "five
containers," or "five-volume book." In Hebrew the Pentateuch
is Torah, meaning "the law" or "instruction." Another
name for the Pentateuch is "the five books of Moses." The books of
the Pentateuch introduce Bible readers to God's divine purposes and plans, and
explain how sin entered the world. In the Pentateuch we also see
God's response to sin, his relationship with mankind, and we gain insight into
the character and nature of God.
God sends
preachers to get us to remember. He sends events to get us to remember. He
sends people into our lives to get us to pause, remember, and consider. People
like Rose who reminds us constantly that the world will go on and we have to
acclimate to it. God sends trials, pain, heartbreak, and difficulty in our
lives many times for the sole purpose of pressing us to pause, remember, and
consider. Rose reminds us in the articles in the paper that life is full of
adversity and struggle. You can flow with it or fight it, but if you want to
live to be 100, flowing works so much better.
Once upon a
time there was a little mouse. The little mouse lived in great fear all the
time. This fear dictated the mouse’s life. He was afraid of his own
shadow. He feared what might happen to him. The mouse could not learn that fear
was doubt. The little mouse’s fear made mountains out of molehills.
Because of his fear he was very suspicious and weary of life. The little mouse
wished he could be a cat, and then he would not have to be afraid. One
lucky day the mouse met a powerful magician. The mouse was amazed to watch the
magician work. The mouse went up to the magician in great fear and
asked. Please, Mr. Magician, I am so afraid, if I were a cat I would not
have to fear. Could you please make me into a CAT? The magician said sure,
Abra-ca-dab-bra --- and the little fearful mouse turned into a cat. The mouse,
now turned cat, was so afraid that in great fear he hid in the corner. The new
cat saw a dog and the dog caused great fear. Later, the cat saw the
magician again and said, I am so afraid, could you please turn me into a dog. I
will be OK if I could just be a dog. So the magician said, Abra-ca-dab-bra, you
are now a dog. The new dog was so proud. As the new dog ran through the woods,
he heard a lion roar and in a great panic, fear caused the new dog to
run. The dog was shaking in fear; he knew if he could just be a lion
everything would be different. The dog kept looking for the magician to add his
new request, for he knew if he could become a lion he would have no
fear. Finally the dog found the magician. The dog barked to the magician,
please, please can you make me a lion? If I were a lion everything would
be fine. The magician said, Abra-ca-dab-bra, I turn you back into a mouse. You
have a mouse’s heart. I could change you into anything, but you have a mouse’s
heart and all you will ever be is a mouse. You must learn to be satisfied.
You didn’t like being a mouse. You didn’t like being a cat. You didn’t like
being a dog. You will not like being a lion. You are a mouse at heart.
Abra-ca-dab-bra, be what your heart is. And the dog turned back into a mouse. What is really interesting about all this are two important truths. One, that we are born with the heart of a mouse or a cat or a dog and when we focus on growing that strength, life is so much better. And second, even the mouse can bring fear into the hearts of elephants and people, so being the small mouse doesn’t necessarily mean you are without power.
Abra-ca-dab-bra, be what your heart is. And the dog turned back into a mouse. What is really interesting about all this are two important truths. One, that we are born with the heart of a mouse or a cat or a dog and when we focus on growing that strength, life is so much better. And second, even the mouse can bring fear into the hearts of elephants and people, so being the small mouse doesn’t necessarily mean you are without power.
So what great
wisdom can we learn if we are willing to listen to those who are older than we
are and have seen much of the world change? The scripture this morning raises
the question, why aren’t we spending more time asking our elders about the
world, about life and about the answers to so of the simplest but unanswered
questions. They have figured something out or they would not have survived all
this time. Rose will tell us to go with the flow. Face adversity head on and
trust God in the midst of it. She has shared that great piece of insight with
us this week in the two articles in the Post and Eastern Shore News. The
scripture this morning says the same thing for us to hear. “7 Remember the days
of old, consider the years long past; ask your father, and he will inform you;
your elders, and they will tell you.” There is great wisdom in spending
time listening to the stories of our elders. Especially when they are willing
to share the adversities of their lives and teach us valuable lessons in how to
deal with the stuff when the stuff comes. And it will come.
I have some words of advice from those who reached that special milestone
of 100 years:
- “Don’t look at the calendar. Just keep celebrating
every day.”
- “Invest in quality pieces; they never go out of
style.”
- “Even if you feel hatred, keep it to yourself. Don’t
hurt other people for any reason.”
- “Don’t ever give up on love.”
- “Nobody else controls you.”
- “Make time to cry.”
- “Don’t be a cheapskate.”
- “Find your passion and live it.”
- “Learn to adapt.”
- “Take time to mourn what you’ve lost.”
- “Get a great education. That is something that no
one can take away from you.”
- “I think [people] have to be curious. They have to
be interested in life outside their little aches and pains. They have to
be excited about seeing new things, meeting new people, watching a new
play—just passionate about life.”
- “Don’t die too early.”
I want to
leave you with a word of advice this morning. One, that God is the God of
creation, the God of yesterday and today and tomorrow. That the message of
God’s love has not changed since the creation of the world and will still be
the same message tomorrow, the next day and the next. That you who believe have
been given a special gift of eternal life to be used for the good of the world,
to share insight and inspiration for the rest of us, just as Rose Mott has done
over and over again. We are never alone and God’s love can penetrate even the
most difficult adversity or obstacle to bring joy.
Rose loves
music and she and I often talk about what it takes to get by in this life. So I
want to leave you this morning with the words of a song from the Sound of
Music. It reminds us that we cannot give up and we must continue on our
journey, no matter what. But along the way we are to give all the love we can
give.
Lyrics from the Sound of Music
Climb every
mountain,
Search high and low,
Follow every byway,
Every path you know.
Search high and low,
Follow every byway,
Every path you know.
Climb every
mountain,
Ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow,
'Till you find your dream.
Ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow,
'Till you find your dream.
A dream that
will need
All the love you can give,
Every day of your life
For as long as you live.
All the love you can give,
Every day of your life
For as long as you live.
Climb every mountain,
Ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow,
'Till you find your dream.
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