Hey, That Religion Degree Might Come In Handy After All....

DaySpring has a ministry that visits the Ridgecrest Retirement Center in Waco once a month. Different communities of faith trade out duties in order to "be church" to our home bound brothers and sisters literally next door. Some time ago, I mentioned to Amber Essick (who happens to be on the leadership team w/Ridgecrest) that I had, A. been in Toastmasters for a while, and B. Had my undergraduate degree in Religion. In fact, as a part of my "Women in the Bible" class taught by Dr. Michelle Tooley, I had the opportunity to preach a sermon in chapel while still @ Belmont. The really short story is that about 6 weeks ago Amber asked if I would be willing to preach on the 5th Sunday of September. Of course, I opened my fat mouth and said a resounding "yes".

At first I was very excited about the opportunity. Not to say I'm not excited about it now. But, the excitement factor has really gotten closer to terror. Over the past year or so, I've given 10-12 prepared speeches in front of my peers @ Toastmasters. I've been called on the floor to deliver various reports and impromptu talks in business venues. I don't recall any trepidation or anxiety about any of those. This is different!

Despite being Baptist, we ascribe to the lectionary and choose the text for services based on the church calendar. I had several choices, but decided on Psalm 91 for this weekend. I am mulling around different ideas and have yet to pin down the primary point of this sermon. The psalmist has created a beautiful poem that stirs up feelings of divine protection and safety. God is painted as both the nurturing protector of the faithful (warm and fuzzy God), but also a fierce, warlike aggressor against the wicked(rough and tumble God). In fact, Psalm 91 has sometimes been called the "Soldier's Prayer". My head is spinning right now, but I am sure by Sunday morning all will be well.