Sermon Competition #4

Topic: What are you doing here?

You have until Friday, July 13th to submit your sermon.

Just to re-cap:

1) You must stay on the topic or theme.
2) Limit your sermon to 5 minutes max or approximately 400-500 words.
3) All original and from your heart.
4) You can cite only ONE passage from a book that is spiritually relevant to you.
5) The judges will offer commentary so as to help your proclamation skills.
6) All are welcome to participate.

The judges will evaluate:
1) Focus/how you stay on topic
2) Creativity in choice or application of passage
3) Keeping the integrity of the passage
4) Use of confessional preaching
5) Persuasiveness.

Originally posted by Mimor
2) Limit your sermon to 5 minutes max or approximately 400-500 words.

Finally.

And just because she is giving you twice as long to finish it doesn't mean it is supposed to be twice as long in length. It is supposed to be twice as good.

Speaking to the judges here. Besides being inept at writing, I'm struggling with taking this whole thing seriously. So far I've seen what appears to be serious evaluations of the sermons, a much better job than I could hope to do, but for crying out loud, this is the spirituality forum. As I had once said, it is good to see some semblance of sanity and order here, but I fear that somehow this "sermon competition" is going to turn into a debacle.
By the way, thanks for the evals. I'm afraid I'll not get much better at writing. I flunked English 101 twice. My Professor finally gave me a D-, I think, just to get me out of her class.

Originally posted by josephw
Speaking to the judges here. Besides being inept at writing, I'm struggling with taking this whole thing seriously. So far I've seen what appears to be serious evaluations of the sermons, a much better job than I could hope to do, but for crying out loud, this is the spirituality forum. As I had once said, it is good to see some semblance of sanity and order ...[text shortened]... sh 101 twice. My Professor finally gave me a D-, I think, just to get me out of her class.

Just to prove that this is not a debacle or will turn in to a debacle, I'm going to help you out. Consider this some after class tutoring.

Look at the theme of the next round: "What Am I Doing Here?" Now look at your post. You flunked English twice. You have trouble writing. You aren't the first person to flunk out of a class. Now this is why psychotherapy could be so beneficial to you. Not to make you a better writer or student, but rather to not set yourself up for failure. You can read the Bible all day long and sing "Just As I Am" til Billy Graham goes to heaven, but it won't help you resolve your propensity to live into "flunkiness" or project flunkiness on to others.

Now this is the perfect fodder for this sermon round. Let's see if you can turn this manure into compost. Ain't that what it's all about?

Originally posted by kirksey957
Just to prove that this is not a debacle or will turn in to a debacle, I'm going to help you out. Consider this some after class tutoring.

Look at the theme of the next round: "What Am I Doing Here?" Now look at your post. You flunked English twice. You have trouble writing. You aren't the first person to flunk out of a class. Now this is why psy ...[text shortened]... Let's see if you can turn this manure into compost. Ain't that what it's all about?

This is really funny. I think you may have spent too much time in therapy, because you over analyzed my post.
I'm not afraid of failing. We learn more from our failures anyway.

Would you clarify the "here" in "what am I doing here?"

Originally posted by josephw
This is really funny. I think you may have spent too much time in therapy, because you over analyzed my post.
I'm not afraid of failing. We learn more from our failures anyway.

Would you clarify the "here" in "what am I doing here?"

"Here" is wherever you want it to be.

Originally posted by kirksey957
"Here" is wherever you want it to be.

Can I get a second opinion?

Originally posted by josephw
Can I get a second opinion?

I left this ambiguous on purpose. There are obviously many way to interpret this topic. My intention is for the participants to view it from many different angles before settling on an approach. That's also why I've given a longer deadline. Just let the ideas ferment for a little while before committing anything to the screen.

And don't sell yourself short. You've come a long way in the space of 3 competitions.

Originally posted by josephw
Can I get a second opinion?

Freewill is a bitch, isn't it?

Originally posted by kirksey957
Freewill is a bitch, isn't it?

Inspired by this piece of wisdom, I have written a sermon based on the the Book of Pirpetraytaz, chapter 6, verse 9:

"Word to tha metaphysically wise
brotha who cannot, however xe tries,
masta xyr psyche's questioning cries:
cross yo' legs in yo' pew and shut yo' damn eyes!

If it's existential depression you dread,
take heed of tha pirp wit' no hair on his head.
Brothaz and sistaz, best do what is said
in tha Tibetan Book of tha Dead!

It's litany time; here's what to do:
You speak after me, I speak after you.
Keep talkin' until tha mantra rings true
and yo' mind possesses a heavenly view.

Brothaz, am I a corporeal thing?
Is this what I am?
Am I my body, tracksuit and bling?
Is this what I am?
Am I my ride, with chrome-plated rims?
Is this what I am?
Am I my Newport Low-Tar Ultra-Slims?
Is this what I am?
Am I my pirpstick, diamond-encrusted?
Is this what I am?
Am I my mugshot from when I got busted?
Is this what I am?
Am I a Blood, Crip or tha West Side Massive?
Is this what I am?
Is my existence active or passive?
Is this what I am?
This is my question: what makes me me?
Is this what I am?
Why am I here, who am I, am I free?
Is this what I am?

Brothaz, and sistaz, that question is whack.
Free will is a bitch it's yo' dharma to smack.

Amen and go wit' Ja."

Originally posted by kirksey957
Freewill is a bitch, isn't it?

We all know who is a bitch, don't we?

What is my purpose in life? I think we have all asked this question. Do I have a divine purpose or do I simply create my own reason for living or a combination thereof? If I do then have a purpose, can I miss such a purpose? I think the most frightening prospect any of us can face is throwing away our lives and thinking of what could have been or should have been.

To help unveil what our purpose may be, I would like to consider King David in Bible in regards to what his purpose was. Perhaps pondering what his purpose was in life will help shed some light as to what our purpose may be. Was David's purpose to sing praises to his God? After all, he was well known for his singing praises to his God as revealed in Psalms. Was his purpose to herd sheep? After all, he was a well known shepherd. Or was his purpose to slay Goliath or perhaps to become king of Israel? Could his purpose have been all of the above?

This leads me to a passage of scripture that may shed some light on what made David "tick" so to speak. 2 Samuel 24:24 says, "No, I MUST pay you for it; I WILL NOT offer my God holocausts that have cost me nothing." This verse has always struck a cord in me. Here we see David honering his God via holocausts and insisting that it cost him something. David is not being forced or coersed here to pay money for his offering or even being told he should do so, rather, David CHOOSES to sacrifice something of value to his God as a statement to his God in regards to how he values him above all else. In essence, it is a form of worship.

You might say that this is what made David "tick", so to speak. He lived his life loving his God. This was his focus, this is what drove him, this was his purpose. Everything else in his life was merely God loving him back by blessing him in return. For example, David sang to the Lord while in the feild shepherding his fathers sheep because he loved the Lord, however, it landed him in the courts of King Saul because Saul enjoyed his singing. Also, David was so appalled at Goliath and the Phillistines blaspheming the name of his God that he loved in front of everyone, he then abandonded all reason and jumped at the oppurtunity to slay the giant with but a few stones and a sling shot. This then propelled him to the throne of Israel.

You might then conclude that King David found his purpose in life? However, you might also be wrong. That is, did David always stay focused on what his purpose in life was which was to love his God? If this was, in fact, his purpose then we can see that at least at one time in his life he lost his focus. After all, he was reported to have slept with a married woman and then killed her husband. He knew the implications for such acts as he was well aware of the commandments of his God that he was breaking by doing so. You might say that David's focus was at that time placing his own personal pleasure above that of pleasing his God. You might say it was love of self over that of his God. When confronted of his sin, however, David repented immediatly and with all of his heart. He knew he had lost his focus and he payed dearly for it.

I can relate to David's plight when he lost his focus. Your world then begins to crumble around before you and it will continue to crumble around you unless you refocus as David later did. We are all designed to have such focus and without it, we are lost. Life comes down to one thing and one thing only. Who or what do you love? That my friend is up to you!!

Edit: Speaking of fous, how did I do Kirksey? Was I focused? 😛

Originally posted by Nemesio
Finally.

Is this your sermon?

Originally posted by whodey
Is this your sermon?

Let's hope so.