Sermon given by Rev. Frank Clarkson, March 9, 2025.
“Life calls us on,” the choir just sang, “Love calls us on.” I could preach almost every Sunday about calling, about vocation, because I truly believe that there are callings coming to us all the time, inviting and urging us to be more of our true selves, to turn toward what is good and live-giving, to not be seduced and led astray by all those voices promoting their own narrow and divisive interests.
Like the prophet Micah said, in this familiar passage:
God has shown you, O mortals, what is good,
and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice and to love kindness
and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8).
Our worship theme this month is “Generosity.” And I wonder, when you hear that word, what comes to mind? Anyone want to say?
Certainly you might think of money. And you might hear more about that in the next week or two, as we ask you to make a financial commitment to the church for the coming year. What I want to reflect on with you today is a generous spirit—cultivating and having that. Which could include how you approach money, but is much more than that.
Isn’t what we just heard from Micah—being kind, and working for justice, walking humbly and being in touch with the Spirit—isn’t this all part of a spirit of generosity?
Here’s a question I wonder about: do you have to be assured of your own goodness and wholeness before you can be good and generous to others? There’s a prayer in some wedding ceremonies that says, “Grant that they will be so assured of their mutual affection that they will reach out in care and concern for others.” Do you need assurance that you are enough, that you have enough, before you can be a generous person?
It doesn’t hurt, does it? Especially when it comes to having a sense of your own worth and dignity. But there are plenty of wealthy people who aren’t generous at all; people who have so much, but still think they don’t have enough. Statistics show that people of more moderate means actually donate more to charity than rich people do. Clearly a spirit of generosity isn’t related to wealth or worldly goods.
No, it’s more about that word “spirit.” Which is the kind of presence you bring, the kind of heart you have. And this makes all the difference in how you inhabit your place in the world, how you move through your days.
You may be thinking, “But I didn’t grow up learning how to do this. My parents were hurtful or harmful to me; we never had enough, they never cared enough.” Or, you could be thinking, “I’ve never gotten a fair shake in life. Things have never gone my way. I don’t have the luxury of being generous.”
If this is true, then you have some work to do—work of healing and recovery, work of learning how to care for your own soul, how to strengthen it, so you can face your life and the world with more of an open heart. Is there anyone among us who is fully formed and complete? We could all use some work, could ’t we?
And this is one of the reasons to belong to a faith community like this one. Where, as Rev. Gretchen Haley writes,
“We never promise that your heart will not break
That your heart could be brave, bold, bursting open
And be saved from the ache the sweeps over all of life.
We can only hope to bolster that bravery
Quiet that ache
Hope to be a community that listens your story into being
Becoming, whispering,
It’s not the end.
Even now
The day breaks for us all.”
I truly believe in you, and in this church. I have seen what you are capable of—this kind of loving and listening and seeing each other into greater health and wholeness. The ways you are reaching out into the wider world, and inviting folks in.
And yet, being part any community that is real also involves getting your feelings hurt, being disappointed, angry even. And that’s where it gets really real—when the temptation is to close off your heart, or run away. The invitation is to keep showing up, to take the risk of speaking your truth, with love.
Despite all the evidence to the contrary, I want and need to believe, as Anne Frank wrote in her diary, “that people are really good at heart.” And if a young girl hiding from the Nazis can remain hopeful in spite of all that she was facing, then what are we capable of? What is possible for us, in these days?
Anne Frank’s example reminds us that we always have a choice about how we will face the day. There’s a basic choice we have in life—between love and fear. How aware of this are you as you move through your day? Are you paying attention to your attitude and perspective? Are you making room, amidst all the noise, for that quiet voice which whispers, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10)?
The truth is, you grow a generous spirit by practicing. By looking up and looking around, by paying attention to the gifts that a day holds, by seeing that, even with all its troubles, it is a beautiful world. By trying to live with more love, and less fear.
This is my simple message for you today, dear companions. That we develop a generous spirit by working on it, by practice. We make the path by walking (Antonio Machado). We become more generous by giving of ourselves: our time, our resources, our attention, our caring, our goodness, our passion. And by being with others who are also practicing. Learning from their example. And being open to the Spirit in which we live and move and have our being; which is at heart a generous Spirit.
We grow a generous spirit by trying. By looking for ways to be helpful. By seeking out the stranger and welcoming them in. By practicing forgiveness. By trying again after we fall short. And we learn that our generosity is not just meant for others; that we are meant to extend it also to ourselves. I hope this community is one that inspires and encourages your generous spirit, and also supports and appreciates you when you take on acts of leadership and care
Can you imagine what our world would be like if we saw one another as blessed opportunities to practice generosity? “What if we could go through a day assuming that those we meet are acting with good intentions? Please don’t hear this as “just be nice.” That’s not what I’m saying. Our world needs as much truth-telling and righteous anger and people with good boundaries as we can get.
But don’t you want to live in a kinder, more generous world? We each can do something about that. Today, and tomorrow. Now, and always,
Amen.