Birth-pains
Psalm 13 and Mark 13:1-8
Preached by Linda Jo Peters ~ November 15, 2009
Unity Presbyterian Church – Terre Haute, Indiana
Called Congregational Meeting Following Worship

SCRIPTURE INTRODUCTION
Psalm 13 read responsively
This psalm has often been used to teach believers how to pray for help. It has the basic elements of prayer: calling on God, naming the problem and ending with assurance. The psalm also speaks to our faith that even when we feel God is absent or at least not where we want God to be, we trust in God’s promises of salvation. Like giving birth, we know something good is going to come from this present suffering.

1How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?
2How long must I bear pain in my soul, and have sorrow in my heart all day long? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
3Consider and answer me, O Lord my God! Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death,
4and my enemy will say, “I have prevailed”; my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.
5But I trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Mark 13:1-8
So is it pains or pangs. Pain is a steady consistent suffering where pangs are spasmodic in nature. But giving birth seems to have both. In fact most creative processes have struggles that go on – such as staring at the computer screen waiting for something to happen or the more spasmodic events of “oh this is so great… where was I going with this message?” Here Jesus gives us either a glimpse into the future and even more a lesson about living in the here and now.

As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” 2Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”
3When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, 4“Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?” 5Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. 6Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. 7When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. 8For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birthpangs.

SERMON
I love the scene in Fiddler on the Roof, when one of the residents of the persecuted villagers of Russian Anatevka, wonders, “Wouldn’t this be a good time for the Messiah to come?” And Tevye says, “Perhaps that is why we always where our hat.” Suffering comes to us all and though we need to be prepared for it (keeping our hats on), all suffering is not the end of time. It may in fact be the beginning of something new and wonderful.

Yet we seem to savor being afraid. The new movie 2012 plays on our relish of being scared.
When people get scared, their bodies automatically triggers the "fight or flight" response—adrenaline is pumped into their bodies so that their heart rates increases, they breathe faster, their muscles tense, and their attention focuses for quick and effective responses to threats.
David Rudd clinical psychologist says that this is nature's way of protecting us. If the brain knows there is no risk of really being harmed, it experiences this adrenaline rush as enjoyable, Rudd explained. The key to enjoying such thrills lies in knowing how to properly gauge the risk of harm. This phenomenon also explains why people can enjoy skydiving, bungee jumping and other extreme sports… Dr. Rudd said. “The key structure in the brain responsible for this effect is likely the amygdala, which is key to forming and storing memories linked with emotions.
Frank McAndrew an environmental psychologist says the ability to enjoy fear makes evolutionary sense, "We're motivated to seek out this kind of stimulation to explore new possibilities, to find new sources of food, better places to live and good allies… People enjoy deviations from the norm—a change of pace, within limits."[1]

So scary tales or predictions of end times are nothing new for people to respond with excitement and problem solve how to survive. The disciples find Jesus’ apocalyptic message titillating. So they go to Jesus and ask when the destruction of Jerusalem would happen. For these people this would be the end of their world. And he says, “This is but the beginning of the birthpangs.” The disciples particularly in Mark’s Gospel are clueless about what is really going on. Jesus has given them a powerful message that out of suffering can come new life. Not the first time he has given them this message. Eventually he will live and die and be raised thus demonstrating this message. But they are more interested as we often are with the coming events not how to live in the here and now. Birthpangs will pass but eventually birthpains come upon us and new life is given breath. Woman over time have learned that certain behaviors help when giving birth. Artist through trail and error also learn routines that help the creative process. Nations over time learn that governance with the people’s involvement works best. We call that democracy but our particular form is actually a democratic republic, a representative government. Today we will be practicing that principle during our called meeting after worship, as we elect representatives to lead us in ministry. All such behaviors though logical also have a powerful emotional link. That emotional link helps us remember: what is important and directs our responses to trials. Wednesday we as a community shared the grief of the Griffin family. More distant we are concerned with the families of those killed and the injured at Fort Hood, Tx. Ultimately all these lead back to the morning of September 11, 2001. Our responses to such tragedies can be how we handle the birthpangs of a new heaven and a new earth. Through it all Jesus wants us to recall his message of hope.
In our Mission Yearbook of prayer and study has a reading about a mission throughout on denomination. On Vertrans Day this was the mission shared:

An injured soldier wraps himself in a blanket knitted by someone he doesn't know, but it comforts him. Parents view their stillborn baby, beautifully dressed in the gift of a hand-knitted layette, and feel a small sense of peace. A woman undergoing chemotherapy pulls the knit cap she has been given over her hairless head and remembers her faith that everything will be all right. These somber scenes are filled with hope from a group called Heartstrings at Henry Memorial Presbyterian Church in Dublin, Georgia.

The group was started by two women at Henry Memorial who were going through their own personal struggles. Barbara Riddle was looking for something to occupy her time after major surgery. After hearing about a hospital needing items for premature and stillborn babies, she began knitting for them. Around the same time, Eileen and Norm Buckhouse lost one of their sons in a tragic accident, only to soon learn that two other sons would be deployed to Iraq.

A friend suggested that Eileen knit prayer shawls to keep her mind occupied. Together Barbara and Eileen began to teach knitting classes, and a ministry was born.

Today Heartstrings continues its ministry not only in its community, but throughout the world. Knitters make hats, blankets, and booties for an African hospital, cast socks and blankets for wounded soldiers being treated in Germany, dishcloths for seniors living in Swainsboro Presbyterian Apartments, and sweaters for children in the U.S. who need them. What began as a source of comfort in a time of pain has become a ministry serving children of God all over the world with a simple gift craft woven with love.[2]

What ministry is Jesus calling you into? Are their birthpangs, in your life that need to be survived or are you ready to suffer the pains of birthing something new? May the Creator of all life guide your breathing in and breathing out. As Jesus said, "With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God." (Mark 10:27). Amen.
[1] “Why We Love to be Scared” By Charles Q. Choi, Special to LiveScience posted: October 30, 2006.

[2] Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study, Tuesday, November 10