Eating Cold Grits

Eating Cold Grits! Part 2

Sermon Notes: Saturday May 9, 2009 & Sunday, May 10, 2009

Rev. Jim O’Neal, Senior Pastor

Sun Lakes United Methodist Church, 9248 E. Riggs Road, Sun Lakes, Arizona 85248 - (480) 895-8766

Proverbs 31:10-31 NRSV

¹⁰A capable wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.

¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.

¹²She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.

¹³She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands.

¹⁴She is like the ships of the merchant, she brings her food from far away.

¹⁵She rises while it is still night and provides food for her household and tasks for her servant-girls.

¹⁶She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She girds herself with strength, and makes her arms strong.

¹⁸She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night.

¹⁹She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.

²⁰She opens her hand to the poor, and reaches out her hands to the needy.

²¹She is not afraid for her household when it snows, for all her household are clothed in crimson.

²²She makes herself coverings; her clothing is fine linen and purple.

²³Her husband is known in the city gates, taking his seat among the elders of the land.

²⁴She makes linen garments and sells them; she supplies the merchant with sashes.

²⁵Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.

²⁶She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

²⁷She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸Her children rise up and call her happy; her husband too, and he praises her:

²⁹“Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.”

³⁰Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

³¹Give her a share in the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the city gates.

2 Timothy 1:1-7 NRSV

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, ²To Timothy, my beloved child:

Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. ³I am grateful to God — whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did — when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. ⁴Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy.

⁵I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. ⁶For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; ⁷for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.

A. Introduction.

1. Tony Pena. (from Guideposts, July 1992, “Beisbol, Mama, and Me” by Tony Pena)

a. Tony Pena played major league baseball for 18 seasons. He was a “Golden Gloves” winner four times, and for the last two years of his career was the oldest player in the league. Pena later became a manager and was the American League Manager of the Year in 2003. Tony Pena says that the person who had the greatest influence on his life was his mother. Pena grew up in the Dominican Republic. They were poor and life was not easy. It is the dream of many a boy in the Dominican Republic to some day play baseball in America. Throughout the Dominican Republic young boys swing old rake handles or “anything they can get for a bat, trying to hit a ball a little quicker, a little farther than anyone else,” hoping one day to play in the major leagues. Tony credits his mother not only for teaching him and his brothers how to play baseball but, also, for giving him a love for the game. It was his momma that taught him how to hit the inside fast ball.

b. Tony Pena is thankful for the influence of his mother. Before he left for the United States, he prayed, “God all I want from life is to be able to help my family. Please help me do that.” Tony has helped his family. “Not long after I made the majors,” he recalls, “I drove Mama through the streets of Santiago.” As they were driving, Tony asked his mother, “What do you think of that house over there? Take a good look Mama.” They stopped in front of the house. His mother replied, “It‘s a wonderful house. Why do you ask? Are you thinking of buying it?” Tony paused, but only briefly. He pulled out a set of keys and said, “I already have, Mama. For you!” His mother just said, “Oh Tony!” and cried. At that special moment Tony Pena said, “I thanked God for giving me such a mother.” Are you thankful for your Mom and the other special women in your life?

2. Today’s Scripture: Proverbs 31:28-29.

a. Today is Mother’s Day and King Lemuel in Proverbs 31 gives us an example to follow. He verbalizes his praises of the good wife and mother, perhaps his own. He praises mom for all that she does and in verses 28 and 29 says: “Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” (Proverbs 31:28-29 NIV)

b. It is one of those scriptures that remind us of the importance of thanking God for the gift of a good mother. This morning I continue my two part sermon tribute to mothers. Last week I told about a woman who placed taking care of her family above having a bowl of warm grits, and that is where the title of this message came from. And if you missed last week you can get a copy of the sermon in the Church Office. Last Sunday we acknowledged that it is not easy being a mother and we were thankful for the many sacrifices made by mom and other significant women in our lives. Today, I lift up two more things for which we all need to thank mom.

B. We thank mom for giving us an example to follow.

1. Best Preacher.

a. Dr. G Campbell Morgan the well known evangelist had four sons. They all became ministers. At a family reunion a friend jokingly asked, “So which Morgan is the greatest preacher?” The five Morgan men in unison replied, “Mother!”

b. It was the boys’ mother who was the best example they had of a faithful follower of Jesus. Mrs. Morgan gave her husband and her four sons the best illustration of what it was to be a Christian. As preachers they talked about being a Christian, whereas their mother not only talked about it, but truly lived the life!

2. Statue of Liberty.

a. The Statue of Liberty was the dream of French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi (Bahr Tawl DEE) and several others. It would be a symbol of friendship between France and America, and commemorate the American Centennial. The plan was to create a monumental statue of a woman in flowing robes, which would symbolize the concept of liberty! Many models were suggested to Bartholdi. Some wanted “Liberty” to be a “beauty queen” and they suggested some of the shapely and beautiful stars of that day’s theater. Some wanted a more classical look and suggested famous Greek statues of Athena or Aphrodite as the model to follow. Still others wanted a stronger “Ms. Liberty” and they argued for a sturdy peasant woman to be chosen as the model. Finally, Bartholdi decided that the qualities “Liberty” should exhibit were kindness and fairness. And then he knew whom to choose. He chose as his model for the Statue of Liberty the kindest and most fair person he knew: His own mother!

b. For so many of us it was and is mom who has been the best example for us. Most of us can’t make a statue to tell her that, however we can express it in words of thanks.

C. We thank mom for leading us to the Lord!

1. God’s Left-Handed Fall Paintings!

a. A young mother and her son Billy were taking a walk through the woods. It was the Fall season and the last frost had “dyed” the leaves into a patchwork of glorious colors! There were brilliant reds, oranges and yellows! As they walked mother said, “Take a look Billy. God painted all that!” Billy replied, “Yes, momma. And to think God did it all with His left hand!” Mother asked, “What do you mean when you say God did it all with His left hand?” The boy replied, “Well, in Sunday School they told us that Jesus is sitting on the right hand of God.”

b. Billy may not quite understand what the Bible means by telling us that Jesus sits on the right hand of God. However, there is one thing that we do understand. For most of us the “right hand” person for God has been our mother. She was the one who took the time to talk to us about God. She was the one who read to us from the Bible Story Book. She was the one who insisted we get up and go to Sunday School each Sunday. She was the one who led us in prayer to the Lord.

C. We thank mom for leading us to the Lord… continued.

2. Henry J. Heinz.

a. Many of us, because of the 2004 Presidential election, know something about the “Heinz Ketchup fortune." However, what you might not know has to do with the man who founded the company, Henry J. Heinz. When Henry Heinz died, and his will was read it contained the following words: “Looking forward to the time when my earthly career will end, I desire to set forth at the very beginning of this will, as the most important item in it, a confession of my faith in Jesus Christ as my Savior. I also desire to bear witness to the fact that throughout my life, in which there were unusual joys and sorrows, I have been wonderfully sustained by my faith in God through Jesus Christ. This legacy was left me by my consecrated mother, a woman of strong faith, and to it I attribute any success I have attained.”

b. You can’t say it much better than that! Most of us like Henry J. Heinz and Timothy from our New Testament Scripture lesson have been given a wonderful legacy by our consecrated mother, who taught us to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ! There is no greater gift than that.

D. Conclusion.

1. Today, honor mom and the other significant women in your life.

a. Today is a good day to remember the words of Scripture: “Honor your mother.” (see Exodus 20:12 & Deuteronomy 5:16) It’s also a good day to remember the words of a grateful baseball player: “I thank God for giving me such a mother!”

b. We thank mom for all that she has done for us. From last week we remember: It’s not easy being a mom. And thank you mom for your many sacrifices for me. Today we say: Thank you mom for giving me an example to follow, and thank you mom for leading me to the Lord!

2. Express your gratitude to mom all year long!

a. So what are you doing to say thank you to mom? Today, do some concrete loving act beyond the usual, and remember to express your gratitude all year long! Even if mom has gone to eternity, you can still thank her in prayer or by doing some nice thing in her memory for some deserving woman in your family or community.

b. And don’t forget the other special women in your life. Are you remembering to thank the mother of your children, that special aunt or sister, or some other wonderful woman who has been a mentor and good friend to you? Are you just giving lip service to her kindness? Dinner and flowers are nice. But don’t forget to lighten her load and lend a hand all year. Put your thanks into action!

Eating Cold Grits!

1. It’s not easy being a mom.

2 We thank mom for her many sacrifices.

3. We thank mom for giving us an example to follow.

4. We thank mom for leading us to the Lord!