February 4, 2024 Mark 1:29-39

[define burning the candle at both ends–light it]

            We want to do our best to be like Jesus, right?  We look at his words and his actions as examples for us to follow as we carry on his ministry on this earth.  Our goal as Christians is to treat people the way Jesus treated people, whether Jew or Gentile, whether well off or poverty stricken, whether female or male, whether family or stranger.

            When I read this passage in Mark’s gospel, I start to wonder about the example Jesus is setting here.  Could it be that we learn from him what NOT to do?  Over the past several weeks we have worked our way through much of this first chapter, the beginning of his ministry.  We heard him announce the coming kingdom of God, call his first four disciples away from their work and cast out evil spirits from a man in the synagogue on the Sabbath.  Perhaps you remember that working like that on the Sabbath ends up getting him in trouble with the strict religious rule followers who insist that that is breaking the law. Now, on the same Sabbath day, immediately (remember how Mark loves that term!) Jesus heads for Simon and Andrew’s home, apparently to stay the night.  The family has opened their door to him and are ready to provide his meals.  Maybe he thought he was going to rest, put his feet up for a bit and have time for food and fellowship with the family.

            No rest for the weary, however.  Right away James and John take him to see Simon’s mother-in-law, who is in bed with a fever. What about dinner?  What about freshening up after a long day?  The first disciples have put something else on his agenda. Have you ever come in from work or just finished raking the leaves and asked to do another task you were not expecting from someone else?  The disciples have already seen him at work and they know he has the power to heal.  Just with a touch he lifts her up.  Jesus gently lifts her from her sick bed, and she is able to return to a ministry she knows and loves—providing for her guests.  Ahh, now it is time for dinner!

            Oh, but not yet.  The sun is going down, the Sabbath is ending, and the people of Capernaum come out of the woodwork!  Everyone in town knows someone who is in need of some kind of healing—physical or mental.  The same is true today, isn’t it?  If it is not me, it is you.  If it is not you, it is your brother.  If it is not your brother, it is your neighbor. You get the picture.

Mark says that the whole city gathered around the door.  At least it seemed like that! Clearly, they would not fit in the house.  One by one, Jesus healed the sick ones and cast out the demons from those who were controlled by a spirit not their own. Each was restored, reconnected to community, suddenly able to walk back home through the dark, laughing and talking with the person who had brought her, suddenly free to visit with neighbors along the way, suddenly able to see himself once again a contributor and not a burden to family and community.  Who knows how long this went on into the night.  But it had to be tiring. Imagine you are a nurse or doctor and all of a sudden, an entire community shows up at the door of the hospital requesting medical attention.  You do what you can, but it is exhausting.  You need relief and rest.  And what happened to dinner?

            Jesus burned the midnight oil on his very first day of work.  Hmmm. Is that the kind of pattern we should establish for ourselves?  If you are on the Session, should you be expected to respond immediately to all of the questions and problems that church members bring to your attention? Just because you love to take care of the grounds, should you be expected to be at the beck and call of church members who have differing views of what is best for the garden?  When you are a teacher of children, should you be expected to bend over backward to connect with parents who are so busy that they forget to bring their children to church for group learning and faith development?  

Burning the midnight oil.  Giving above and beyond of your time and energy.  I know many of you do that for your church.  Yesterday 24 of you gathered for extra hours outside of Sunday worship attendance at our congregational retreat.  One thing we observed was that a good percentage of our church members who are able to be involved in our ministry are giving their time and energy.  You rarely say no when asked to help in some way.  You love the church, you love the members of the church family, but you are human, and you do have other aspects to your life besides church, right? Just because Jesus burned the midnight oil on his first day of work does not mean that you do not need to care for yourself!  You need to be wise about how you spend your energy and time.  You need to evaluate what you can do, what you want to do and what you can say “no” to.  Then you will have more energy and can focus on the things that you are really committed to.  You will be serving somewhere that you are really needed.  I know we like to say, “If you need something done, ask a busy person.”  After looking at the demographics of our most active disciples, maybe we should change that to: “If you need something done, ask a busy, retired person.”  Certainly, it is true that busy people tend to be organized and good at follow through.  But it is also true that we in the church have a bad habit of overloading busy people.  Overburdening church members is harmful to the individual and to the community.  Saying “no”, or saying, “not now”, can be healthy for the entire system.  Sometimes as a church we do need to say “not for now” about a particular program or activity. We need to pay attention to our bandwidth.

You see, the whole church family benefits when you carefully select where and how you will be involved in the church’s ministry.  You being selective makes room for others to step up.  When you take a break from one area, others who have been cautious about stepping on your toes or horning in are able to develop their gifts and talents in new ways. Another potential result of focusing your ministry focus is that one or more particular form of ministry or events or activities may have to be set aside until someone else feels called to pick them up again.  And that is ok. 

Just because Jesus burned the midnight oil does not mean that you have to.  Maybe I should say that again.  Just because Jesus burned the midnight oil does not mean that you have to.  I believe Jesus would rather have an effective, energetic disciple doing what she is excited about than an exhausted disciple running on empty.  Those kinds of disciples are contagious.  Those are the kinds of disciples we do want to emulate.

Jesus not only burned the midnight oil, but he got up early, while it was still dark.  Burning the candle at both ends.  There is something about the quiet before the busy day begins that is especially conducive to connecting with God.  He left the house and went out to a deserted place to pray.  He did not invite the disciples to join him. He did not have to worry about the cock crowing or the cooks preparing the morning meal or someone else needing healing.  He could focus.  He could talk freely with his Father.  He could be nourished and replenished for the day ahead.  This was not work, but preparing to work, equipping himself for the next item on his agenda—traveling and preaching.  He soon would be traveling from town to town throughout the region of Galilee to preach and teach and cast out demons.   The way to be ready for God’s work is to check in with God first.  Maybe it is like your shift change meeting or the team meeting with the boss before the workday.  You make time to listen for God’s Word to you, acknowledge your need to depend on God, share your concerns and worries with your Creator, give the Lord thanks for a new day full of its own opportunities and challenges.  

As the day dawns, Jesus is praying.  Alone with his Father.  Alone with God who called him to this unique ministry. Is that burning the pre-dawn oil? I don’t think so because he is not working, he is reconnecting with God, preparing to begin the day. It seems that Jesus knows his time is short and he has to pack in as much as he can.  Late nights, early mornings, no coffee breaks—run, run, run.

How about you?  How do you refuel, reconnect, find rejuvenation for your ministry here at Hunting Ridge? I want to be clear that I believe each of you does have a ministry here.  You are a welcomer at the door, a vacuumer of bread crumbs, a keeper of the keys, a singer or a dancer, a decision maker, a money counter, a lightbulb changer or a visitor in the home of an ill brother or sister in Christ.  A church family needs all members to pay attention to the tasks of ministry Christ has tapped you for.  At our retreat yesterday, you spent time looking at where we are right now as a congregation, and also had some beginning conversations about what shifts will need to be made in the year ahead as we consider where to allocate our human and financial resources. Burning the candle at both ends is dangerous.  You might say to me, well, if Jesus can do it, I should at least try.  But I say to you, burning the candle at both ends saps your energy and dulls your enthusiasm, and it can keep the rest of the congregation from realizing its potential.  Take it easy.  Don’t panic.  Select where and how you will use your gifts.  Ask for help from others—Jesus was the only one with the power to heal that night, but our responsibilities and tasks can be shared in many ways. Seek God’s guidance and strength on a regular basis.  Make time alone with your Creator–  it doesn’t have to be in the pre-dawn hours, but maybe it’s your lunch break or your evening walk.  Every time you set aside the time for conversation with the Almighty One you are refueling for what is ahead and renewing your energy for ministry. Perhaps then you can guard against burning the candle at both ends.  Amen.