"Seize the Day"

8 Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. 9 Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some men for us and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” 10 So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed.12 But Moses’ hands grew weary; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the sun set. 13 And Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the sword.

Exodus 17: 8-13

We who are strong ought to put up with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 2 Each of us must please our neighbor for the good purpose of building up the neighbor. 3 For Christ did not please himself; but, as it is written, “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.” 4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. 5 May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, 6 so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 15: 1-7

One of my favorite movies which has carried over from my childhood is Disney's "The Newsies", recently adapted into a Broadway musical.  This story tells of young orphaned boys who are struggling to make a living at the turn of the century, ultimately leading to the historical New York City newsboy strike of 1899.  When the boys are exploited beyond reason and can no longer make any kind of a living, they have to figure out how to look out for one another and overcome this challenge. The story outlines their struggles and their triumphs, complete with an energizing and motivating song for almost all major aspects... just like any good musical.

I imagine that the feelings felt by the newsies are not terribly unlike those felt by the Israelites in this morning's text.  The Israelites have been travelling for some time and have definitely had their share of doubts and complaints along the way.  Prior to this battle with the Amelekites which we have just read about, Moses and the Israelites fled bondage in Egypt. This was when they encountered the plagues, the pass over, consecration of their first born, and began to follow the pillar of clouds by day and pillar of fire by night. The Israelites crossed the Red Sea, wandered in the wilderness, cried and complained to Moses, and ate quail and manna from the Lord.  They were exhausted! Despite the death of the Pharoah and their struggles in their escape, they have found themselves in a battle with the Amelakites who seem to always have a grudge against the Israelites.  It is as if the carpet has been taken right out from under them once again.

How would you feel in this situation? I hate to tell ya, but as Christians we are very much in a similar battle today.  Granted, we aren't necessarily fighting a hike in distribution costs like the newsies, even though as individuals it does seem like it when we go to the grocery store. We aren't in physical battle with a group who seems to have it in their genetics to hate us.  We are, however, in our own form of battle.  The 21st century has not been kind to Christianity... or religion in general.  Schedules are so slam packed that few make the effort or are able to find time to come to worship on Sunday morning.  Social Media is providing an illusion of the community that was once provided by local churches. Celebrities such as Bill O'Reilly, author of "Killing Jesus", and comedian Bill Mahar who was recently quoted as saying that God is a "psycotic mass murderer",  are speaking out and writing against not just Christianity, but most (if not all) forms of religious practice. As many people watch the nightly reports of religious based wars and rumors of war, such as the current ISIS attacks, and hear of the millions of refugees all over the world who have been forced out of their home country because of their religious affiliations, they begin to question the validity of most religions. The 21st century has made it far more easier to claim no religion than the formerly popular "spiritual but not religious", and the Church is feeling the effects like a blow to the head.

What stands out most to me from this morning's reading, however, is not that the Israelites are in battle.  The image that has stuck with me since the first time I came across this text is the image of Moses standing on the hill with his arms outstretched and holding the staff of God in his hand.  This image of outstretched arms is one that is commonly associated with praise and prayer today and seems to bring a form of confidence and peace with it. This is the pose commonly used when trying to make yourself seem larger as you make a point or to build confidence, just like in this memorable image from The Newsies.  This position completely opens the body to the world thus bringing with it a sense of vulnerability as well.  In this image of Moses, the leader, with his arms outstretched and visible to all around, Moses also becomes just as vulnerable as those fighting the battle. After hours of holding his arms out and opening himself for the Lord to work through, Moses struggles to keep his arms raised as he has grown weary. As his arms begin to fall, the Amalekites begin to prevail.  When he is able to raise his arms once again, the Israelites prevail. It wasn't that Moses was working any kind of magic- rather he was serving as the visual reminder of the hand of God, continually encouraging the Israelites who looked to him.

When Aaron and Hur saw that Moses was struggling, they stood on either side and helped him to keep his arms raised until the sun set. One song from The Newsies that has always inspired me, and actually served as the inspiration for this morning's sermon, speaks of this unity in struggle shown by Moses, Aaron, and Hur-

            Now is the time to seize the day 
            Stare down the odds and seize the day 
            Minute by minute that's how you win it 
            We will find a way But let us seize the day 
            Courage cannot erase our fear 
            Courage is when we face our fear 
            Tell those with power safe in their tower 
            We will not obey! 
            Behold the brave battalion that stands side by side 
            Too few in number and too proud to hide 
            Then say to the others who did not follow through 
            You're still our brothers, and we will fight for you 

In Paul's letter to the Romans, he also speaks to the call to stand side by side which the newsies sing of, recognizing that some of us are stronger or weaker than others.  We don't stand by our neighbor for our own benefit, even if that element is present.  Instead, we stand by our neighbors in order for their benefit and most importantly to praise the Lord.  When the Newsies came together, not just from New York City but from all over the east coast, it wasn't for their own benefit- it was for the benefit of the whole.  When Aaron and Hur stood on either side of Moses to hold his arms up, it wasn't of any benefit to them... they could have left if they wanted to.  Their presence on either side of Moses strengthened that visual reminder and encouragement until the battle was over.

In a time when it seems that everyone is against us as Christians, it can be all to tempting to hide in a corner until it seems to be over. Or we can hand it over to that other church or trust that the people up high will do something about it. Or we can look around us and realize that we are not alone in this, or in any other aspect of our lives.  As a student at Union I was constantly faced with a challenge- whether that was a Hebrew exam or trying to find students to help lead worship during mid-terms.  I remember agonizing over these and many other hurdles during my three years, but more importantly I remember those who sat by my side studying or checked in with me every week before worship to find out how they could help me. Even in my loneliest moments, I was never alone. When I was given a job description for the Church Relations position, I saw very quickly that this position is one step in a journey as the seminary takes its place beside our congregations in both praise and struggle. I knew that I had to return to the community that served as my own Aaron and Hur and step into this role for our own neighboring congregations.

The trick, however, is this- as a whole, we are only as strong as our weakest member. My question to each person here today, including myself, is how are you supporting one another- both within this congregation and the neighbors encountered each and every day? This can be as simple or difficult a task as you wish. Sometimes we can support one another by simply smiling and say "Hi" as we walk past someone on the street.  Other times we might actually be holding our neighbors hand through a struggle. However, I don't think that this congregation is a stranger to supporting one another- I can see the love and support each one of you shows for the congregation from here. I think what many people, including myself, struggle with is ACCEPTING support.

I would have been very interested to find out how Moses reacted when Aaron and Hur showed up by his side.  Did he try to convince them that he was ok, telling them that he could make it? Did he tell them that they should go back into the battle and help the others? How long did it take for Aaron and Hur to convince him to let them help? One of the things that I remember most from my time spent as a hospital chaplain was the constant reminder that I gave my patients, "it is ok to ask for help". This is a reminder that I believe I was telling them as much as I was telling myself. I remember crying when one of the other chaplains looked me in the eye and told me, "Jordan, you can talk to me. I will listen." I had spent all summer trying so hard to be strong that I forgot that I too could be weak.

Brace yourselves- here comes my cheap plug for the seminary. We are not only for those looking to be Christian Educators, whether that be as a Pastor, Chaplain, Social Worker, or Sunday School teacher.  The seminary is open to all who have a desire to delve deeper and increase their knowledge and strengthen their faith and relationship with God.  We offer public lectures and book talks both in person and live-streamed on our website.  We offer workshops for a range of aspects of worship and ministry.  We have studies on DVD and can even bring a faculty member to your church to lead a discussion or give a lecture. And we want to do more. We want to hear from you what your needs and desires are so that just as Paul charges us to do, and Aaron and Hur show us how to do, we can support you just as you support us through prayer, involvement in our student's lives, and by sharing your own resources. In fact, that is what this weekend has been about as we led workshops yesterday and communed around the dinner table last night before sending our students, faculty, and staff throughout the Presbytery to lead, teach, and preach this morning.  This weekend has been a very mutual act of support and I would like to personally thank you for your involvement in it, and urge you to reach out and let us know how we can continue to support you as you support us.

As individuals we all have our strong and weak times.  As a congregation there are both strong and weak times. As a community, denomination, religion, we DO have strong and weak times. As much as I love the rest of the song from the Newsies, the line that captures the spirit of support as all of the newsies come together to sing "once we've begun, if we stand as one, someday becomes somehow and our prayer becomes our vow".  When we sit passively as day to day life sends struggles of every kind our way, and as the 21st century presents its own struggles for religious institutions of all shapes and sizes (including  everything from small congregations to large seminaries), little to nothing will happen to move forward.  However, when we both give and ACCEPT support from our neighbors just as we read about in the account of Moses, Aaron and Hur and in Paul's letter to the Romans, our word filled prayers become action filled prayers and vows.

Yesterday, the seminary's president, Brian Blount, spoke of building community through the Eucharist. Even if I had the time to say everything he did, I couldn't do it justice, so I will just leave you with this thought-  The Lord's Supper is about finding wholeness in the brokeness. I interpret this as when we come together as broken and hurting individuals, yet individuals who are helping to hold up the arms of our neighbors while allowing them to do the same for us, we become a whole. Our arms are intertwined creating braces that make us stronger, and running through each brace is the power and grace of God. Our wholeness brings strength to face whatever challenge comes our way.

And so I ask you- what are YOU praying for today in your own life? What are you praying for in the life of this congregation? What are you praying for in the surrounding communities and out into the world? There are definitely a few options to pick from. Now, how are you standing with your neighbors in both your prayers and theirs? How are you adding action rather than just words? How are you accepting those actions of others into your own life?

            Behold the brave battalion that stands side by side

            Too few in number and too proud to hide
            Then say to the others who did not follow through
            You're still our brothers, and we will fight for you
            Once we've begun, if we stand as one
            Someday becomes some how
            Our prayer becomes our vow

As our first step to seize the day and stand side by side in our celebrations and our

struggles, let us stand and hold our neighbors hand like Aaron an Hur or hold our arms out

to the Lord just as Moses did, knowing that just as God acted through Moses' tired arms,

God acts through us today and all days. Now, together as a whole in word and action filled

prayer, let us confess what it is that we believe using the Apostle's Creed...