Living in the Flow of Union

by Pastor Gina Johnson

All right. So here we are, and it's the beginning of Stewardship Month. And those of you who know me know that I think Stewardship Month was established for some reason somehow, but in today's day, I think every day, every moment is Stewardship Moment.

Because when you have a Stewardship Month, it tends to cause that kind of stirring of, oh, this is a month where the preacher is going to stand up there and each week just talk to us about bringing in that money and getting our offering up and volunteer for this and sign up for that. Well, there you go. That was my segment of that. That is the last you're going to hear of me saying, come on, bring in that money, sign up, take your place where it belongs. Okay. Let's move on from that.

Stewardship is about being in union with God. It's about living in the flow of the union that we have with God and being good stewards of all that is ours and all that is God's. So, today, as we go into our time of hearing the word, I'm going to take you all to a familiar story, so you should be able to follow along, and it takes us to Exodus chapter 16.

The story is after the Israelites have been set free. You see, the Red Sea is behind them, and yet the freedom led them into the wilderness and once they were in the wilderness, hunger set in. And along with hunger, their fear began to rise. And as their fear rose, they started falling into an illusion of wishing they had what they used to have.

They started thinking during that freedom in the wilderness that once again, they were prisoners. They really believed that if they stayed in this wilderness longing for what was, they were surely going to starve. But the Lord heard them, and he spoke to Moses, and he gave Moses instructions.

And in the morning, when the dew lifted, the ground was covered with this fine, white, flaky substance. It was almost like frost across the ground. In their confusion, they looked at it, and they said, “What is this?” And Moses said to them, “This is the bread the Lord has given you to eat.”

He gave them instructions. He said, “There is one condition, just take enough for today. No hoarding, no storing up for tomorrow.”

So each day, they gathered it, some more, some less. But when they measured it out, everyone had enough. No one had too much, and no one had too little. Everyone had exactly what they needed. But there were some who tried to save it and when they found it in the morning, it was spoiled, and it was filled with maggots. But those who trusted in the Lord, they found the gift fresh every morning.

Day after day, through the wilderness, the manna came, the bread from heaven. This was life from God's own hand, and it was reminding his people that they did not live by fear. They did not live by striving, but they lived by the divine provision of the Lord in the flow of being in union with him.

So, before we continue in the story, before we even picture the Israelites living in the wilderness, let's just pause and spend a moment in human condition, something that lives in us, and I'm sure we've all been there at some point.

We fall into these rhythms of life, these comfortable places. You know, life is steady, and our routines are predictable. And even though there's a little bit of up and down here and there, for the most part this is how it goes. These are how my days flow. This is what I do. This is where I go, and everything seems pretty good.

But suddenly, or maybe sometimes slowly, and without even realizing it, something changes. Challenges appear, and we start to shift into survival mode. And in that survival mode, maybe we pray, maybe we meditate, maybe we look back and remember all the things we have to be grateful for, but a lot of times, we become ungrateful. We don't start questioning with curiosity of, how can I navigate through this? How can I work in this, trusting in God? Instead, we get fearful, and we complain, and we grumble, and we start to look back, and instead of looking back and remembering all that God has brought us through, we forget.

We look back at only the highlights and think, why don't I have that anymore? Instead of looking back at other times of challenge and saying, if he brought me through that, he will bring me through this. It isn't just about forgetting the gratitude. When we get in that place of being in our own wilderness, where we're grumbling, and we're shaking our hands at our providers, at our leaders, at everything around us, we're also forgetting who we are.

Most importantly, we are forgetting who is the one that is caring for us. Who is the one that we call the source of all life and all that is good? Who is the one that makes sure from the clothes on our back, to the roofs over our head, to the food that we put into our mouths, that is actually providing those things for us? We forget that we have a divine connection with God, and that connection has carried us through season upon season. It's been a steady presence that is always there.

It's just usually we get caught up in the complaining. We get so caught up in the struggling that we drown in it. When someone falls into a lake or into a pool, and they start to struggle and struggle and struggle, they're so caught up in the fear and the emotion of it all that their chances of drowning increase because they forget that if you just pause, and you breathe, and you rely on the one that's been there all along, you too will come to a safe place.

It's very easy, like the Israelites, to confuse discomfort, to confuse a challenge with abandonment. It's very easy when illness sets in, when finances are challenged, when our relationships are challenged, when our congregation is challenged, when our children are challenged, when we are challenged, to forget that the wilderness is simply a classroom.

It's a classroom where we can learn to trust again. And I want to tell you, our sanctuary, about five pews from the front, served as a classroom for me just the other day. I spent the morning visiting with one of my congregation members, and it was absolutely beautiful and I enjoyed being there. And the minister from the Nazarene Church, Laura, she happened to come in while I was there, so I got to meet her, and that was absolutely beautiful. And one of the cleaning ladies that came in was so full of life and storytelling, and so I got to visit with her, and I got to sit and visit with the member’s daughter, and it was wonderful.

Then on the drive back, I listened to the Epistus Sophia, which is a Gnostic text, which is absolutely beautiful. And then I got to the church, and I found some property members in my office helping me kind of navigate the changing around of furniture, and I had a visit with one of our leaders. And as the day continued on, I had a lot on my mind, and it was because of the season that we are in right now.

It's a season of figuring the budget, nominating people. On Tuesday evening, I have my pastoral evaluation, and it's time to sign contracts and have a vote and all of those things, and next thing you know, it's going to be Christmas. And so, as all of this is creeping in on me, and I was feeling unsettled just a little bit, I came into the sanctuary, which is where I like to come and just be for a moment.

But instead of being, I was building a snowball pile called Kleenexes right beside me. I think I went through about five or six, and, you know, my office manager came in at one moment while I was on the phone with my best friend for a minute, and that wasn't really helping me very much, so I hung up that phone call, and I just sat here talking to God. And as I sat there, I messaged my office manager because I wanted her to know that I'm okay because she’s my friend, too, and that I'm just here.

She knows me well, but I think sometimes when we're saying one thing, we're really crying out for another. And she responded to me and said, “Do you want to be alone or would you like some company?” And I told her, “I'd like some company, but I'm crying like a baby right now.” And so, she came in, and she sat beside me, and I shared with her just a variety of things I was feeling, and yes, there were tears, and yes, there were a few bad words in there, but there was a lot of, “What do I do here? How do I work through all of this? What else can I do? What do I need to say? Do I do this? Do I try that?” And I'm just going, and she knows I'm not expecting her to answer me.

I am just appreciating her presence. But not only as my dear friend, our office manager, as one of the elders in the church, you know, she offers me, and I don't remember word for word, but she brings me back around to being in the wilderness. And I can grumble, and I can be mad, and I can shake my fist at Moses and say, “Why do you bring me here?” Well, why did you all hire me if it was going to go this way?

And the truth of the matter is, in the wilderness, what I needed to do was just remember. Remember who I am. Remember who we are. Remember who is the one that is living within us, that has put those fingerprints all over us. Remember the God that we are directly extended from. The empowerment of Christ that is within us.

Now let me take you back to the story. Israel, they're in the wilderness. They've come through the Red Sea. And how long does a miracle like parting the Red Sea last when you're hungry? How many times have we had great things happen in our life, and then something small creeps in and frustrates us a little bit, and we forget?

These Israelites just avoided multiple plagues. They were just freed from slavery. They just walked through the Red Sea being parted. But that wasn't good enough for them. You know, how many times have I had moments like that?

Well, not as many as I used to, praise God. But I used to have them rather regularly. And when I had them, I forgot all the great things that have happened. One, just the blessing of being born to my family. And then how many things have we survived? We've been homeless. I've had brain surgery. I've had five pre-term pregnancies. A couple children that had to stay in the hospital. We've had car accidents. I mean, just thing after thing.

I've had so many people close to me go through trials, ups and downs, and ups and downs, and I've seen the Lord's hand at work. And how have I seen His hand at work in the people that I was witnessing, in the people that I was with, in the power of the Spirit, and the testimonies that come as I stand here on the other side of all of it? I can't even list the blessings that are in my life that I've received, because we would be here, not just the rest of today, but I will just be here, you know? Grab your Snuggie and get comfortable, because that's how real God's provision is.

It starts with that simplicity of, guess what, everybody? I woke up in a comfortable bed this morning, with one blanket on, one on the floor, an extra pillow beside me. You know, there are people that woke up this morning hiding in a corner, on the side of a street, on a park bench, in a place infested with all kinds of rodents and bugs and just disgusting. But I, Gina, who's fallen short many a time, I woke up in this home, in this bed with my sleeping children there, with one of my best friends living in the home next door with my other children.

Wow. And that's just my morning, you know? I got to come to “Costco World Communion Day” at the church on Sunday morning because our worship chair had the sanctuary decorated with multiple kinds of communion. Come on. It just gets better and better. But that's the thing. I'm talking about the little things.

What did I celebrate a couple months ago? I celebrated 21 years of not having seizures. It's amazing. It is amazing. That person who sits in the front pew of the church on Sunday has been with me for 20 years of my life, raising children. And though we are not together, he is still one of my best friends. What a blessing.

My parents aren't together, but they are both happy and healthy and healthy relationships. My congregation may be small, but I do believe that everyone here loves one another, loves this church, loves this community, and I hope loves themselves enough to remember who they are, that we can continue in appreciating and feeling and receiving this abundance that we can give it to others.

I told my office manager Sunday morning as we were talking about, do we have people to pass the offering plates since we were doing communion by coming up front? I said, that's funny. You know, our worship chair said the same thing to me. I wasn't even thinking about it, but I said, “Hey, you know what, Virginia, enjoy worrying about having two people to pass offering plates because the day is coming where this place is going to be so full that we're not going to have to worry about having people to pass offering plates,” and you can hear it and you can shake your head and you can roll your eyes and we'll continue to have empty pews or we can trust and we can live in that divine flow of union with God and say, “Hey, do I need to mark my seat?” Because it's going to happen. It's happening now. Oh, don't get me going.

I ended up losing my place all over the place. So here we go. We have the people right there in the desert and they're upset because their bellies are grumbling and they're calling out and they're remembering stories in their minds.

“At least when we were in slavery, we had something to eat every day. You know, we didn't have all this dry hot desert. We had everything we needed,” they said.

And so, they cry out and Moses is there witnessing and he's talking to God and God responds, but he didn't respond with punishment. He didn't respond with anger. He responded with provision.

That's where the real manna of story begins. See God's gift is given every day, every moment and it's fresh. There is always enough for each person, for each household, for each day. Isn't that what we pray when we say the Lord’s Prayer? Don't we pray for our daily bread? Well, that's exactly what God gives us. He gives us our daily bread, our sustenance.

So the first lesson to hold onto is remember that all of our provision comes from God and it comes from our union with God. The manna didn't come from their own strength. They didn't bake it. They didn't barter for it. They didn't go to the local market and buy it. And they certainly didn't earn it. It came from God as a gift from God's love, from that abundant flowing source. And it's true for us. Every breath, every relationship, every opportunity is from our union with God. You know, Jesus said, I came that they may have life and have it fully. 

So, think about a garden. You can plant seeds, but you can't make it rain. You can't make the sun shine, but you can participate. If you don't participate, if you don't trust in the source of life, then nothing will come because the garden reminds us that everything begins and everything continues with God. If you can remember that all provision comes from God and from our union with God, then I challenge you this week to start each day by saying quietly, this breath is a gift from God. I live in the flow of the union with God.

Then the story gets interesting, right? Because they were told to only gather enough for that day. Okay, here you go, but only take enough for you, for your family, for that day.

Some tried to hoard it. Some tried to stockpile it for tomorrow. God was passing a message to me from a spiritual leader such as Moses and said, “Hey, you see all this, this is bread from heaven. And all you need is enough for today because God said there'll be more tomorrow. By the way, he parted the red sea the other day and he sent all those plagues and because you put lamb's blood on your doors, none of you were affected. So this is a small instruction. Just gather enough for today, guys, there will be enough tomorrow.” 

But there were still some that didn't believe it. There were those who trusted and always had enough and there were those who tried to keep it. And what happened? They had maggots, they had stench, they had waste. And how often does this culture tell us the opposite of what Moses said of what God is saying? How often does this culture say security is going to come when you cling to it tightly? Security is going to come when you hoard it, when you put it away and make sure, because the only one you can rely on is yourself.

Trust is what keeps the flow of our union alive. Trust is what keeps our hearts open to receive more and more. Our paychecks, or perhaps it's a social security check or retirement check or something of that nature, is like manna. You can treat it as if it's yours alone. I've earned it and it's mine and so now I'm going to hoard it out of fear, or you can just see how it flows. You can let it flow with energy and service and creativity. You can use it to give blessings that'll move through your life and through the life of others.

Or, again, you can hoard it. And you may think, “Well, my money's not going to spoil.” Okay, that's fine. You can go in that direction, but you have to remember that God did not give us abundantly and bless us so we would keep it to ourselves. God's love is not just for us and it doesn't always come in the form of money.

Maybe this week you can release something that you've been holding on tightly, simply by buying someone lunch. Maybe you can release something that you've been holding onto tightly by writing a letter or calling someone and offering that apology that you should have offered a while ago. Maybe you can release something this week by instead of sitting down and wringing your hands and furrowing your brow and worrying, you can close your eyes and take a breath and sit in the truth of who you are. You can sit in a moment of prayer and you can let go and just trust that when you stay connected to the giver, that everything you need has already been given to you.

As we continue in the story and we see there were people who gathered much and gathered too little, but regardless, they always had enough. Even those who walked away with a small pile still had enough.

God fed the thousand with a fish and the loaves of several thousand. That just looked like a little bit and it fed thousands, thousands. In other words, when we share, there is always enough for everyone. That is the rhythm of divine union.

The rhythm of divine union is when you recognize that God's love and God's provision cannot be contained. For those of you who say to yourselves, “ I am blessed. I am healthy. I am doing well. My family is doing well and we are taken care of.” That's beautiful.

That's because God has shared the abundance, which is already yours, with you and you can do the same with others. When a farmer, and this is also a story we're familiar with in the Bible, when a farmer locks up a bunch of grain in a barn it doesn't multiply. It doesn't grow there. It only multiplies when it's planted. When it's shared, it has to be shared with the soil, shared with the sun, shared with the rain.

And when our gifts, our time, our resources are given away, are shared, that is when they multiply. I want to encourage you this week as you're releasing something that you've been clinging to, as you're finding a way to live more in the flow of union, to perhaps take on one intentional act of generosity this week, not out of duty, but out of joy. Give someone encouragement, share a meal, offer your time in a different way. Whatever flows up in you, let it flow through you and become nourishment for others.

You see, this manna story today, it isn't just about food in the wilderness. It's so much more than that. You know, God says, you're not separate from me. My life and my love flows in you. When Jesus prayed in John 17:21, he said that they may all be one just as you father are in me and I in you. That is true stewardship.

Stewardship is not separation. It's not, God owns all of this and I manage it. You are tending the garden with God. You are tending the garden in God and not because God needs us to. This is what we were created to do. We were brought here so we can co-create, so we can circulate and so we can live in a divine flow with God and with one another.

As we are entering into stewardship month, as you all heard, a lot was on my mind as I was thinking about everything upcoming. As I was thinking about what our church does look like on Sundays, as I was thinking about the little bit of noise that maybe we're too afraid to share out loud, but it doesn't mean it's quiet. And in those moments, it's easy to sit and think about meetings, budgets, evaluations.

As I'm searching for new leaders, as we're trying to honor policies and voted on documents that were voted on in a completely different time and place. It can feel heavy. It can feel lonely. It can feel tiring. It can feel aggravating. But the truth of the matter is, these are the moments where we don't cling to the discouraging thoughts, where we take the time and have hope, where we look at past mistakes and past misunderstandings and recognize them as the wilderness, as a classroom that teaches us how to be good stewards, how to live in the flow of union, how to pass on the abundance that we were already given. That's right here.

This is where our manna story begins. When things are feeling unclear, when the pews are empty, when we have only two elders, but it's okay.

It's more than okay because why are there still people here week after week? Because we're family, we're community, we're sharing the gifts and the love we have, even when sometimes we look at it and we think it's not enough. When things feel unclear and when provisions don't look as we would have expected them to look, we need to remember God. We need to remember our union with God. We need to remember that stewardship is not about control, but it's about having connection.

In the end of that story, what Moses does is he takes a jar and he fills it with manna and he places it in the ark of the covenant with the 10 commandments, the tablets. We need to be like Moses.

We need to look back and remember all the times that we were in the wilderness and we were provided with that manna and let that metaphorical manna be more than that. Let it be a memory in our hearts and our minds, embodied in our souls that tells us who we are, that reminds us of the source that we trust in our God, our Lord, our savior, Christ Jesus. It's how we trust God. It's how we live in this union that will get us through the wilderness and our moments together.

So, how do we hang on to this? I just want to give you all a few things to consider this week.

One is just taking that breath each morning and saying whatever words feel right to you. Maybe it's just taking a moment and closing your eyes and saying, “God, I am here with you. You are here with me. Thank you.” It's that moment of gratitude. Begin your day and end your day with gratitude for what is, not worried about what's missing. Trust that everything you need is there. It's just a matter of us remembering and reclaiming what is ours.

 Let scripture nourish you. Let scripture be something that you turn to not out of obligation, but out of love.

Pause and before you react, remember to respond with presence over panic. When we don't have something, when we're challenged by something, remember to just pause for a moment. You don't have to get angry. You don't have to get pulled in. You can pause and reflect and be grateful and keep showing up for one another because sometimes the manna that God is bringing to us is going to come from you. Sometimes it's going to come from the hands of a friend, but these small practices, these things that will keep our hearts connected and tuned into the flow.

Stewardship is like tuning an instrument. When one string vibrates in harmony with the source, all of the others will start to resonate. So, let that song come forth. Let us all tune ourselves to the source of God. And then it will not only bless us, but it will continue to bless the entire world.

Please pray with me. Our almighty God, we are ever so grateful for all that you give us. God, in this time, as we are beginning a month of stewardship, may we recognize that every day we are blessed to co-create, to be stewards of your love, of your grace, of your truth, of your peace. Let us trust in the abundance that we are, the abundance that we have, and the abundance that flows through the Holy Spirit to everyone and all people of this beautiful creation. God, thank you for this time.

May we take your word into our hearts and may we be empowered with your love and your strength. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.