Sermon
Series: Normal Is
Just A Small Town In Kentucky
“Leaving ‘Last Chance’ Heading
For ‘Needmore’”
(Romans 12:9-11)
Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn
INTRODUCTION:
Hope.
Our world is filled with people whose lives are standing at the Crossroads.
Down one road is despondency and despair, and down the other is total misery
and dejection. And that’s ALL they see because that’s ALL they have ever experienced.
Somehow in life they missed the exit sign and the turn off to a life of Hope
and Joy and true happiness. They don’t know there is another road.
They
are like the character Leroy from the comic Lockhorns who comes home from work
and says to his wife, Loretta, "The
day went the way it usually does when your life is going down the drain."
A
large percentage of people are living lives of despair, lives with no perceived
hope. For many of these people, they’re on their “Last Chance” or think they
have “No Chance” when the solution is they “Needmore” Hope and “Needmore”
people who are willing share Hope.
During Hollywood's golden years there were many people in the film
industry who were known for their practical jokes. One of the best known and
most creative of these was a fellow by the name of Jack McDermott. He was a
writer and director of movies.
McDermott's favorite gag was to take his guests for a ride in his
Model-T Ford. Taking them into the mountains, he would careen around curves at
perilous speeds. When a guest would complain about his recklessness, he would
yank the steering wheel from its post and toss it over the mountain side. Of
course his passengers would get all panicky and go nuts. But what his panic
stricken rider didn't know was that he had installed foot controls for steering.
(1)
Clare
Boothe Luce, the playwright, journalist, editor, congresswoman and eventually
Ambassador to Italy, who covered World War II in Europe for Life Magazine said:
“There are no hopeless situations. There
are only people who have grown hopeless about them.” Frederick Langbridge
put it another: “Two men look out through
the very same bars: One sees the mud, and one the stars.”
The
truth is, we can’t have hope without getting over ourselves or looking beyond
ourselves. We have to Leave ‘Last Chance’
and Head For ‘Needmore’.
Let’s
look at the passage for today, Romans
12:9-11.
It’s only three verses so I want to read it
first from the NRSV and then from The Message.
(NRSV) [9] Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is
good;
[10] love one another with mutual affection;
outdo one another in showing honor.
[11] Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit,
serve the Lord.
(MSG) [9] Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear
life from evil; hold on for dear life to good.
[10] Be good friends who love deeply;
practice playing second fiddle.
[11] Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled
and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master,
I
love how The Message translated verse 9: “Love
from the center of who you are; don't fake it.” The reason I love it so
much is because when we love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength
we are able to acknowledge that we ARE NOT the center of the universe, God is.
And when we get that, when we move beyond ourselves, we are able to “Love from the center of who [we] are.”
And when that happens our lives begin to be filled with Hope and we
don’t think this is our “Last Chance”
I.
LAST CHANCE:
A. Last
Chance, Colorado, was named in 1926 by Archie Chapman and Essa Harbert, who
wanted motorists to know that their filling station was the last chance to buy
gasoline for 80 miles west or 104 miles east. But you and I know people who are
living in “Last Chance” or “No Chance” every single day of their lives. They can’t
see beyond the City Limits. They don’t have any hope at all.
During Hollywood's golden years there were many people in the film
industry who were known for their practical jokes. One of the best known and
most creative of these was a fellow by the name of Jack McDermott. He was a
writer and movie director.
McDermott's favorite gag was to take his guests for a ride in his
Model-T Ford. Taking them into the mountains, he would careen around curves at
perilous speeds. When a guest would complain about his recklessness, he would
yank the steering wheel from its post and either hand to them or toss it over
the mountain side.
What
his panic stricken riders didn't know was that he had installed foot controls
for steering. (1)
B. A
lot of people have no clue that there is more to life than the road to despair
and despondency. They don’t know that God is a God of Second Chances, not Last
Chances. They don’t know that God wants to love them not thump them on the
head. They don’t know that God wants the best for each us, and isn’t trying to
make our lives miserable.
God
wants us to Leave ‘Last Chance’ and Head
For ‘Needmore’.
II.
NEEDMORE:
A. You
have probably seen the Bluebell Ice Cream commercial that says in Needmore they
need more Bluebell Ice Cream. So, just where is Needmore, Texas? According to
the Handbook of Texas, there are actually 4 Texas towns named Needmore.
The
oldest Needmore was established in 1850, Delta County. They couldn’t quite
decide what to call their town, which was also known as : Jernigan, Pecan,
Pecan Branch, and Eureka. The town officially became Needmore when the post
office was named in 1886.
The
next Needmore appeared around 1900 in East Texas, Nacogdoches County. This was
followed closely in 1904 by a Needmore in Terry County. And the last Needmore
came in 1920 in Bailey County.
All
of these communities were apparently named because they needed more settlers.
None ever grew to be large towns and today only a few homes mark the spot of
these once hopeful settlements.
But
the name speak to what we need in our daily Christian walks. All of us,
especially those folks leaving “Last Chance,” Need More Hope; Need More Faith;
Need More Love and Grace and Mercy so we don’t slip back into that “Last
Chance” mentality.
Slipping
back into that “Last Chance” mentality is a real danger because it CAN drain us
of Hope.
B. It is known simply as “The
Play.” “The Play” is the name of what some would call the greatest game
of football ever played, anywhere, anytime. Can anybody tell me who played in
“The Play?” Right: California vs.
Stanford.
Can
anyone tell me the year of “The Play.?” Right:
1982.
So,
“What was so special about “The Play?”
With
53 seconds left in the game, Stanford was down 17-19 and stuck in their own
backfield. It was fourth down, 17 yards to go. But miraculously the Stanford QB
(anybody know who? . . . John Elway) rallied, got the first down, and Stanford
marched down the field. In four plays they got to the 18 yard line. With eight
seconds to go, the field goal kick was up and good. Stanford had won the game,
20-19, and the crowds started going crazy.
But
the game wasn’t over. There were still four seconds remaining on the clock, so
Stanford had to kick off. Stanford fans started crashing the sidelines and the
band walked onto the field. But that’s when the game became The Game. [Watch]
California
won the game, 25-20, on a play that could never be repeated. “The Play” is still unbelievable.
In
my mind, “The Play” represents the Good News of Jesus Christ because in every
situation God always has the last Word. That Word is always filled with Hope and
that Word is always “Victory.”
The
classic example and model is the Crucifixion. That night, after Jesus had been
laid and sealed in the tomb, sin and death had already stormed the field in
celebration. The party lasted the entire weekend, but then on Sunday morning
came “The Play.” The Greatest Play of all.
When
they weren’t looking; when they least expected it, God snatched victory from
sin and death. Jesus danced in the end zone because Resurrection was “The Play”
God had in mind all along.
Victory,
Resurrection and New Life are always God’s final play.
That’s
why we are called to Leave ‘Last Chance’
and Head For ‘Needmore’.
That’s
why we are called to share the Good News that God is a God of Second Chances.
God is a God of forgiveness. God doesn’t want us entombed in Last Chance or No Chance. The stone has
been rolled away. God wants us living and growing and serving in Needmore, realizing that we Need More
of everything God has to offer. And all we have to do is reach out and receive
it.
C. When
we embrace life in Needmore; when we reach out to receive all that God has to
offer our lives are changed significantly. We get off the road to despair find
that exit to the alternate route in life; a life in Christ. A life filled with
Hope.
Jesus’
first miracle was to change water into wine. That miracle showed the world that
God in and through His Son, Jesus the Christ can take something as ordinary as
water and make it into something new and beautiful. The truth is, God in Christ
does it every single day. God in Christ takes the ordinary events of our lives
and redeems them. Jesus touches our lives and changes the ordinariness of our
lives and transforms them into something beautiful. God transforms our lives
and moves us from ‘Last Chance’ to
‘Needmore’.
A
sermon and illustration have sort of swept across YouTube. A particular pastor
noticed how some of the homeless or needy hold cardboard signs at intersections
with words like, “Will work for food” or “Viet Nam Vet, need help” and he
started wondering about their back story – what was the other part of the story
of their lives. And he developed a service which has been recreated in a ton of
churches. The service was called “Carboard Testimonies” (Watch)
[VIDEO-CARDBOARD TESTIMONIES]
CONCLUSION:
We
all have our own personal testimonies of what God has done in our life. I
didn’t grow up in the church. I accepted Christ when I was 22. If I were to
hold up my own sign it might say: “Broken and Rejected. Unwanted Son, Unwanted
Stepson” And the flipside would say: “Redeemed Child and Son of the Heavenly
Father.”
Wherever
we are in life, God can and does take whatever we are and whoever we are and
changes us into something beautiful. No matter what our back story, God’s story
for us is forgiveness, redemtption and second chances. God transforms our lives
and moves us from ‘Last Chance’ to
‘Needmore’.
Today,
and everyday really, there is one simple question: “If you’re stuck in Last
Chance or No Chance what are you waiting for? God wants you to Leave ‘Last Chance’ and Head For
‘Needmore’.
God
promises to supply your every need. All
you have to do is receive it.
This is the Word of the Lord for this day.
________________________________
Bibliography
1. THE LAUGH CONNECTION, p. 3
2.
3.
4.
Other
References Consulted