Where do I go

Sermon given June 10, 2018 at Sydenstricker UMC

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^NIV Deuteronomy 34:1 Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho. There the LORD showed him the whole land-- from Gilead to Dan, ² all of Naphtali, the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Mediterranean Sea, ³ the Negev and the whole region from the Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar. ⁴ Then the LORD said to him, "This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, 'I will give it to your descendants.' I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it." ⁵ And Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the LORD had said. ⁶ He buried him in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no one knows where his grave is. ⁷ Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.

In the Disney movie Pocahontas, the main character, a young girl is suddenly thrust into a new reality and she asks the question in a song of course, “Where do I go from here?” Today there are folks here who are facing new realities as they end journeys they have been on for some time. Some of you have been at this since almost after birth, entering pre-schools and then Kindergarten until your graduation shortly from High School. What an adventure it has been but the fun is only beginning. Some of you have gone on from High School and now graduate from College. Is that rejoicing from the parents in the room I hear? Now you find a way into vocations that will lead you places you cannot even imagine. Some of you have completed postgraduate work that allows you to soar even further in your life. Each of you is here this morning but there is a little voice inside you asking the same question Pocahontas asked, Where do I go from here? I want you to remember something important today. If you forget where you came from, and focus on where you are, you will forget where you are going.

The world you are now entering is not unlike the wilderness of the people of Israel when they left the Promised Land. They left what they had known, what they were comfortable with and homes where they had grown up, raised their children and buried their dead to go somewhere they had never been before. Many-left Egypt with great anticipation of what would come but they then spent 40 years wandering.

The words of Pocahontas song seem appropriate here:

The earth is cold
The fields are bare
The branches fold against the wind that's everywhere

The birds move on
So they survive
When snow so deep
The bears all sleep to keep themselves alive

They do what they must for now
And trust in their plan
If I trust in mine, somehow I might find who I am

But where do I go from here?
So many voices ringing in my ear
Which is the voice that I was meant to hear?
How will I know?
Where do I go from here?

So I am speaking to you today as a Pastor, as a person who has shared your journey, your anticipation and fears and as a father who has two children who have also shared your journey. We must trust first in God, the one who created us and has shared in our journey from our birth. We must trust that God will walk beside us every step of the way and like the people of Israel, be there to guide us. In order to follow in that guidance, we must never forget our Christian roots. If you forget where you came from, and focus on where you are, you will forget where you are going.

When Moses was born, his fate lay in the hands of those he did not know and those whom knew him as a slave. Yet, God directed his mother to relinquish him to the water, knowing that if he stayed where he was, he would be put to death. Moses was plucked from the water by royalty and became favored in the court of the Pharaoh. Not since Joseph, had a Hebrew been favored in the Pharaoh’s presence. The irony here is that the court did not know of his Hebrew heritage, But Moses could not allow injustice to prevail and so he killed an Egyptian who abused a Hebrew. To escape being punished for that crime he fled to the west where he came into the influence of God. We may never know what a burning bush looks like or what it means in our lifetime to stand face to face with God. But Moses did and because of his faithfulness, we are here today, worshipping how we choose to worship and finding ways to move in the direction of God’s will. As we see from this narrative, Moses is on the mountaintop, overlooking all of what we now call Israel and Palestine. I am told that from the top of Mt. Nebo not much can be seen because of the lay of the land. Yet we know that Moses at the age of one hundred and twenty saw everything that God wanted him to see. Moses saw all of the land of Israel that the Hebrew people would inhabit, lose, and then inhabit again, several times. Imagine with me for a moment that God gives you sight beyond your normal capability and shows you the vision of what God wants for you and the people who surround you. What a wonderful gift. But the story has a sad side. Moses is not allowed to walk among the palm trees, the valley of Jericho were the people of Israel would win a great battle in the days to come, or the great city of Jerusalem, which would be built and destroyed several times. No for Moses, his time had come. He had been faithful and he had followed God’s will along the way.

My world has changed and so have I
I've learned to choose
And even learned to say goodbye

The path ahead's so hard to see
It winds and bends but where it ends
Depends on only me

But where do I go from here?
So many voices ringing in my ear
Which is the voice that I was meant to hear?
How will I know?
Where do I go from here?

For 40 years, he had led the Hebrew people from captivity to the land of milk and honey, the land of Abraham’s promise. Here he is taken into God’s kingdom in heaven and his bones are known no more. It is interesting in that Moses place in death stands with Elijah and Enoch who were taken by God to their place of rest and Paul tells us that they are among the faithful that were faithful and yet have not received the promise. Moses is the giver of the law and the one to whom we look to when we hear the story of the Mount Sinai experience. Moses shared the vision God gave him with the people and even though they rarely believed him, they followed him. Moreover, they followed the promise that Moses shared with them that God had given him of a place with milk and honey.

So what sets Moses apart and how does his life project our own. Hebrews the 11^th and 12^th chapters tells us that many faced stoning, destitution, persecution and even death as they walked in their faith before God. ³⁹ Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, ⁴⁰ since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect. God has a promise for us that if we walk the ways of God’s, live a life that imitates Christ in the world and follow the will of God, it is then that we will receive our reward. However, that reward is not physical or material.

Each of us has shared in a journey of life, which began at birth and has followed some great valleys and mountaintop experiences, all of which has led us here to this moment. We each have shared in dreams, some of which have been fulfilled and others still yet to come. But all of all at one time or another have wondered where we are going and what comes next. My words to each of us this morning is to remember our roots, especially our Christian roots and trust God as the guidance and direction for our futures. Like Moses, the road in front of you may not take you where you thought you were going but God will always take you to the place that is best for you. God will be faithful and we need to be faithful along the way. If you forget where you came from, and focus on where you are, you will forget where you are going.

In my heart I don't feel part of so much I've known
Now it seems it's time to start
A new life on my own 

But where do I go from here?
So many voices ringing in my ear
Which is the voice that I was meant to hear?
How will I know?
Where do I go from here? (Walt Disney Records)

Today begins the first day of the rest of your life. A life that will be filled with joy, with fun times, with some sorrows and sadness too, but a life where you get to experience the glory of God if you let yourself. Today you step out into new realities, the paths you cannot even see and yet like Moses on the mountain, God is showing you the path. When you ask where do I go from here, the answer lies deep within your heart. Let it be your guidance. Remember your roots, where you have come from and all that it has taught you, then step out into the future, and become the person God has called you to be.