“Gospel in a Drowning Land”
Matthew 9:35-10:8
Rev. Désirée H. Gold
St. Mark’s United Church of Christ, Baltimore, MD
Sunday, 22 June, 2008
Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time
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 In 1997 Eastern North Dakota and Western Minnesota experienced what they referred to as a 500 year flood. The record snowfall melted too quickly and the spring rains came too hard, and the Red River kept rising. Fargo was hit pretty hard, but the city of Grand Forks, where my father grew up, was the worst. No amount of sandbagging could hold back the rising river. Then, after days of fighting the flood waters, a fire started. Now, you would think that a fire wouldn’t be a big deal when surrounded by so much water. The trouble was, fire crews were unable to make it through the flooded streets. Downtown Grand Forks burned, and a number of buildings were completely destroyed, after already being heavily damaged by the flood. There was nothing anyone could do about it.
I am very grateful that my parents’ house in Fargo was on high enough ground that they only got a little water in the basement. Many houses in Fargo, Grand Forks, and all along the Red River were destroyed. Then there were the farms. Crops that had already been planted were drowned, and there was no hope of planting anything else in the sodden ground. The livelihood of countless farmers was washed away with the flood. The Great Flood of ’97 washed away lives and brought heartache.
Last year Grand Forks marked the 10 year anniversary of the flood with thanksgiving and a new sense of hope. It took a number of years, but the city has come back better than before. Downtown has been rebuilt, the university and the air force base continue to bring in new residents, and Grand Forks is thriving. People of faith are crying “Praise God!”
As people of Eastern North Dakota remember the eleventh anniversary this year, I can only imagine how their hearts are aching as they watch a similar flood drench another part of the Midwest. As we all know, Iowa and other parts of the central United States are enduring catastrophic flooding after a series of tornadoes and relentless rains. Homes have washed away, cities are under water, and farm land is swamped. It’s the Great Flood of ‘97 all over again, except now we have the fresh images of Hurricane Katrina stuck in our minds, so the devastation looks all too familiar.
The destruction in the central United States follows two major natural disasters overseas. First, there was the cyclone in Myanmar. Then the earthquake in China. Neither of those countries will recover for years to come, and the same will be true for the Midwestern United States. We will not even have a good handle on the level of destruction until the flood waters have receded. Only then will the mud and grime and mold and rot show themselves. Only then does it become clear what has floated away and what is still standing.
At times like these, when our world seems so battered and broken, it is hard to figure out where God is or what God is doing. The word “gospel” means good news, and it is hard to find good news in a world that literally seems to be crumbling beneath our feet. How can we proclaim the gospel when our brothers and sisters are suffering so? Where is the good news?!
It is, indeed, difficult to find hope when we watch on TV as houses -- in Myanmar or Iowa -- are washed down a raging river. It is hard to find hope when we see the tears of people -- in Missouri, in China, in Myanmar -- who have lost everything they own and have, in some cases, lost members of their families. We wonder where God is and why on earth we are not standing in three feet of water in our living room.
Then we come upon this morning’s scripture: “When [Jesus] saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless. He had compassion for them. The words that follow these may give you insight into where you can, in fact, find hope in times like these: “Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’”
At first glance, the words about “the harvest being plentiful” may grate on one’s nerves in light of the many acres of farmland that have been destroyed and the number of farmers who will have no crop to harvest this year. It is likely, in fact, that many small family farmers will be pushed out of business permanently because they simply cannot afford a year without a harvest. But the agricultural language used by Jesus was one that his listeners could understand, and it is one that most people from the Midwestern United States can understand as well.
It’s true that in this case, the harvest is far from plentiful. But enormous amounts of labor will still be required, as residents of these drowned places attempt to recover their lives. There may not be plentiful harvest, but there is more work to do than there are locals who can do it. Christ, therefore, is calling us, his disciples, to go to those harassed and helpless folk: “As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment.”
I was overseas when the flood of ‘97 hit, but I know that it was the hard work and good deeds of outsiders that lifted the hearts of those whose lives seemed washed away. That recovery effort is finally done in the areas along the Red River of the North, but much remains in the news about volunteers who continue to help rebuilding New Orleans and the other areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina.
In times like these, when hearts have been broken by natural disaster, they begin to mend with the outpouring of love from those who see their plight. The good news about the realm of God can actually seep through the muck and the tears when it is brought by people who have come to help. As Christians, we are compelled to love our neighbors in China, in Myanmar, in Wisconsin, and to find some way of showing them our love. Of course, we pray. We may also send money through the UCC Disaster Response Funds or other relief organizations. There has been difficulty distributing aid to Myanmar and China due to political tensions, but that doesn’t mean we stop trying. We may write letters to people in areas affected by the disasters, share artwork, send words of hope. Or we may, indeed, go to the areas themselves and provide the labor of our hands.
When Jesus commissioned his disciples he was not just calling on twelve fishermen. He was calling on all who follow him to do the hard work of discipleship. You may not have the ability to send $100 for relief efforts or go tear down flood-damaged houses and build new ones. But you must find some way to help. Simply saying “I’m too busy” isn’t good enough. Even if the only thing you can do is pray, then do a whole lot of praying. If you can write a letter to someone -- maybe to one of the UCC churches in Iowa that has been damaged by the flood -- then do that. Or simply talk about the events. Don’t let the people of Myanmar be forgotten. Don’t let the people of China be forgotten. We are less likely to forget our own American Midwesterners, but make sure they’re not forgotten too. Remember, it will be a very long time before these places recover, and remembering their plight will take a whole lot of heart. By giving us the leadership of Jesus Christ, God equipped us with that heart, so let’s get back to using it. We have been called by Christ. Let us answer.
Now let us pray.
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