"Foolish Unity"

     To the church of God which is at Lake Highlands Presbyterian Church.  Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  I already thank God for you, and for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus.

      I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.  (1 Corinthians 1:10)

      I have been here among you only five weeks.  I have already discovered a division among you.  It is not (as in Paul's letter today) a petty disagreement or even a serious quarrel.  It is something beneath the surface, a silent division we would rather not think about, let alone talk about openly.

      As I began to prepare for this week's sermon, I considered the two New Testament scriptures provided by the wisdom of the lectionary.  I initially thought I might preach on Matthew 4, the calling of the first four disciples.  Matthew is such a good storyteller!  His narrative texts are easy to preach from.  They tell a story, and everyone loves a good story.  This Matthew text would make a good follow up after last weeks' account of the calling of the two in John.

      The only trouble is, it doesn't seem as if God is calling me to preach on Matthew this week, to re-tell a good story.  Having awakened a couple of times during the night with immediate thoughts of Paul's letter to the Corinthians, I suspected there must be a message there that needed to be heard.

      I haven't been here long. Already I'm impressed with your hospitality, your warmth, a strong sense of the spirit of God here, how well you work together and how you care for one another.  What might God be trying to say about divisions here?   There seem to be no major divisions.  But then, as happens sometimes, it came to me in a flash in the wee hours of the morning.  The divisions of the church in Corinth that Paul was addressing made me see more clearly an issue in our church which has so recently come to my attention.  Paul's words from so long ago gave me a better sense of what is at stake.

      I could ignore it for a while.  I could minimize it or dismiss it.  After all, the problem has been brewing---this division has been going on---- for at least eight years.

      And there are some of you I am sure who will go home and say, "What right does she have to come in---a newcomer---and tell us we have a serious division?"  "Who does she think she is?"

      I am who God and you have called me to be---your pastor.  And your pastor is concerned about the wholeness and health of Lake Highlands Presbyterian Church.  Sometimes pastors are called to say difficult things, and to speak the truth in love.

      There is a serious division in our church.  It has nothing to do with Cumberland vs. PC-USA.  It has nothing to do with one former congregation over against another.  The division is this.  Two thirds of our families make a commitment to support the church financially and one-third do not.  You may think, this is not a division, this is a personal choice.  On one level, you are correct.  But on a deeper, spiritual level, you are mistaken.

      Paul's letter to Corinth was a call to unity.  Things were in chaos.  People were going every which way.  We have our ways of idealizing the early church, but the fact is, it was a mess!  Read the book of Acts.  On a very fundamental level Paul's call to unity demands that the church put something in order that has fallen into disarray.  Our spending and giving patterns are in disarray.  Our church budget is in serious disarray, and it is imperative we all come together in our commitment to Christ and to Christ's church, to put it back into order.

      There is another side to this serious division in our church:  for years, we have been spending far more than we were taking in.  Here are some of the things I have just learned.  (You may want to get a pencil out).  Since 2004, even though our giving has increased some, the number of families pledging has dropped from 123 to 92.  This is a 25% decline in pledges, even though our membership has been steady or even slightly increased.  Every single year since the merger of this congregation eight years ago, the church has spent a lot more than it took in.

      Our reserve operating funds have dwindled by nearly $380,000 in the past 4 years.  In other words, for the past four years, we have spent nearly $95,000 a year more than we took in from offerings, pledges, and fundraisers.  If the church continues at the current level of spending and giving, the church will be out of reserve funds in less than three years.  In other words, the church will be broke.  When?  September 2010.

      Are you shocked?  I hope so.  I suspect most of you did not know this.  If you had known about this problem, if you really had understood how serious it is, I am quite sure many more of you would have pledged already, and many more would have significantly increased their pledge.  Being Christian does not mean being irresponsible.  God has not called this wonderful community of people together simply in order to close the doors a few years from now.  God has much for us to do here in Lake Highlands.

      Discussions are already underway with the Session, Staff, and leaders of the church to put the budget into better order.  Discussions with you, the members, are also planned.  I urge you to come to the congregational meeting February 24 so you might hear and read about the full picture.  Not only the financial picture of the church, but the work and the life of the church.

      Difficult decisions will have to be made to reduce spending where we can and to begin to live within the discipline of a budget.  Most are not accustomed to doing this, and it will take some time for our church family to adjust to living within reduced limits.  The Session and the leaders of the church must come together with a unity of purpose and a unity of will to do the difficult things that need to be done.  But cutting the budget where we can will not be nearly enough.  It is simply not possible to cut our budget by $94,000 this year.

      The need is pressing.  This is no time for factionalism.   No time for quarrels.  No time for saying, "Well, I already belong to the group of those pledging" or "I belong to those giving, but I refuse to pledge".   There is certainly no time to say, "I promise to give nothing to the church." This is no time for holding back from promising our material commitment to this church.

      This is not the time, either, to argue about what has happened in the past.  There simply isn't time.  No time for looking back, for blaming, for second guessing decisions from the past.  The past is gone.  It is the future God calls us toward.  We must remember our purpose as a church:  to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and to make it possible for that to keep happening into the future.  We are unique here.  Only we can do what we do here in Lake Highlands.

      This church has many gifts, and many gifted people.  Wonderful things are happening.  We are growing in membership.  We are attracting new people.  We have a very high quality music ministry, Christian Education offerings, youth ministry, and community mission and outreach.  Our care for each other and our enjoyment of each other is spirit-filled!  We have a child care center with the potential to be top notch and to provide a needed ministry to young families in our area.  We have a marvelous physical facility at a prime location.  I know you understand utility bills keep going up even when Sunday offerings are down.  We have a new and growing worship service.

      We have a fantastic staff.  I know you would like to be able to keep them.  You may not really know how blessed we are to have the staff commitment we have.  In the past few years the Session has made staffing decisions which position the church for growth.  This will continue to be a stretch.

      God's church needs the members of the church to be unified in will and in purpose.  It is time to put aside our worries about controlling how our gifts are spent.  It is past time to "wait and see" how things are going before pledging.  It is time for each one of us, from the most generous and able to the most financially stressed, to understand our own spiritual need to give.

      The Bible has much to say about the use of our money and resources.  Jesus clearly connected the use of our money with our spiritual growth.  If we dismiss this large amount of scripture, the Word of God, we will not be able to grow spiritually.  It is a matter of obedience.  A matter of trust in God's provision, and a matter of letting go of our dependence on ourselves.

      We are united in so many ways.  We are united in our common baptism.  We are united in our belief in Jesus Christ.  As members and regular worshippers here, I think it safe to assume we are all united in the Great Commission and in the work of Christ in our community.  We are united in so many ways.  What will it look like when we are united in this part of our life together?

      Every member will participate in financial stewardship.  Some members will tithe, because they are called to tithe.  Some members will pledge much more than 10%.  Every member will pledge.  The Session will know exactly where our limits are and will not have to guess how much "extra" might fall into the offering plate.  Every member, knowing this is so, will be joyful in the knowledge we are united and we are all doing our share for the work of Christ in this church.

      Balancing our budget isn't really what it's all about.  Balancing the budget is just the beginning.  Many leaders here share the vision of a church that is a beacon of hope to Lake Highlands.  When we get our house in order, there is so much more we will do!  More ministries to the community, more mission giving, more assistance to people in need.  We have the chance to be Christ's hands and feet in our neighborhood and beyond, and, when we do, how glorious it will be!  Even more people will be drawn to join us, just as they are drawn to Christ.  What a day that will be!

      There are those who say, "God will provide."  I believe it!  God will provide!  But God provides, not through some unexpected windfall, not through money falling out of the sky like manna, but through us:  our mind, our will, our resources¹.  God provides, though our own discipline, sacrifice, and generosity.  I am confident the pledges are there.  Think for a moment about your discretionary spending.  Jot down on your bulletins, just for yourself, what you spent this week that was not a necessity.

      Pledge today to give up your Starbucks habit and contribute that $10 extra each week to the church.  Pledge today to go shopping less often and give that money to the church.  Pledge today to eat out one less time a month.  Pledge today to postpone upgrading your phone, your car, your computer, or your cable service.  But go further.  Think sacrificially. Think joyfully.  The money is there, in our pockets, in our accounts.  Each one of us, must reach into them and set them free, for the future of Lake Highlands, for God, and for our own spiritual growth.

      Call me a fool for believing God will turn this thing around.  Call me foolish when I envision every participant here taking a share in our financial need.  Call me a fool, and join me in the foolishness.