II SAMUEL 6:1-5, 13-19

[6:1] David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand.

[2] And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale-judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the LORD of hosts who sits enthroned on the cherubim.

[3] And they carried the ark of God on a new cart and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. And Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart, [2]

[4] with the ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark.

[5] And David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the LORD, with songs [3] and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.

[13] And when those who bore the ark of the LORD had gone six steps, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened animal.

[14] And David danced before the LORD with all his might. And David was wearing a linen ephod.

[15] So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the horn.

[16] As the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, and she despised him in her heart.

[17] And they brought in the ark of the LORD and set it in its place, inside the tent that David had pitched for it. And David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.

[18] And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts

[19] and distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, a cake of bread, a portion of meat,  and a cake of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed, each to his house.

If you weren’t here last Sunday you missed it.   It was one of those moments where you end up scratching your head and wondering “Did I miss something?”  It all started when Scott White our music minister prerecorded the second half of the service.  He did that so he could go up to Fellowship Hall and help the children learn to sing a new song.   Tom Parker, our senior deacon, was over at the organ turning the knob and pressing the play button right on cue.  At the end of the service we were all standing there ready to sing “Shalom To You Now.”  So, Tom pushed the play button and the organ immediately started trumpeting those familiar notes. “Joy To The World The Lord is come let earth receive her king…”   Tom turned to me with a look of horror on his face while Scott had a mini-stroke out in Putnam Hall and the rest of us?  We just erupted into unrestrained laughter.

It probably wasn’t very dignified and that might bother some people.  After all praising God is supposed to be serious business.  When you praise the Lord you’re supposed to be somber, staid and stoic.  You’re supposed to be dutiful and dignified.  Of course David didn’t see it that way at all.  

When David brought the Ark of the Covenant into the Holy City he basically celebrated with a great big party.  You get the feeling that there was quite a bit of whooping and hollering and while all that whooping and hollering was going on what did David do? He stood there in the middle of the street and danced before the LORD “with all of his might.”  David saw this as an occasion to celebrate. He was saw it as an occasion to rejoice and be glad. 

Not everyone though was pleased though with David’s public display of joy.  Michal, Saul’s daughter found it a little disrespectful to God and demeaning for a man who was supposed to be the king of Israel. We’re told that when she looked out her “window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD…she despised him in her heart.”

David didn’t care what Michal thought though.  That’s because David didn’t take himself too seriously.  That’s a problem for some people.  How about you?  Do you ever take yourself too seriously?  When you take yourself too seriously it’s all about image and being important.  It’s all about where you work and what you do, where you live and what you wear.  When you take yourself too seriously it’s all about image and what people think about you.

Believe it or not that can actually be a problem sometimes for a minister.  That’s because when you believe that God has called YOU to be a minister the temptation is there to take yourself too seriously.  That attitude led to an interesting conversation between a priest and a little boy.  The little boy and the priest were both attending a house party and the little boy was intrigued by the priest’s collar.  He’d never seen anyone wear a collar like that before.  So, the little boy kept staring at him.  Finally, the priest asked the little boy if something was wrong.  When the little boy pointed to the priest’s collar the man of God smiled proudly and said, “This is actually a very important symbol and do you know why I’m wearing this collar?”  The little boy nodded his head and said, “Yes.  It kills ticks and fleas for up to three months.”

David didn’t take himself too seriously and when you look at what happened that day it raises a question that only you can answer for yourself.  Who would you say you’re more like in this story? Are you more like Michal or David?  Are you a person who takes yourself too seriously or are you a person who doesn’t care what other people think? 

The problem with taking yourself too seriously is that you up with less and less joy in your life.

When I was in seminary many years ago the pastor of the church where I was serving as a student minister said something to me that made a big impression on me.  He noticed that I was always so serious and that everything had to be just right.   So, one day he said, “What would happen if you were to get up in front of the congregation and make a mistake?”  “Oh,” I said, “that would be just awful.”  Rev. Coakley just nodded his head and said, “Well, then this Sunday I hope you fall flat on your face.”  At first I was shocked and I thought, “That isn’t a very pastoral thing to say.”  The more I thought about it though the more I realized he was doing me a favor.  He was sharing some important words of wisdom with me. His point was “Don’t take yourself so seriously. Even if you fall flat on your face it won’t be the end of the world.”

David will tell you the same thing.  Don’t take yourself too seriously.  Life will be a lot more joyful if you don’t. When you don’t take yourself too seriously you begin to see that God really is great and life really is good. 

You begin to look differently at those mountains you have to climb. Instead of just being mountains that need to be conquered you begin to see that on that mountain there are all kinds of wonderful flowers for you to enjoy. Not only that but you’ll also look forward to the spectacular views and the refreshing wind that will be waiting for you when you get to the top of the mountain.  You’ll stand there at the top of the mountain and your heart will be glad.  Like David you might even sing and dance a little as you give thanks to God.

Life is so much better when you don’t take yourself too seriously.  Just ask David.  Just ask Ann Weems.   In her book “Reaching For Rainbows” she has a little essay called “Cough Drops In Church.”  It’s a dialogue between a parent and a child.  The parent asks:

Parent:             What do you like best about church?

Child:                        I like cough drops.

Parent:                        I know you like cough drops, but what do you like best about church?

Child:                        Well, cough drops are important to little kids like me.

Parent:                        Cough drops are very nice if you have a cough.

Child:                        You mean if I don’t have a cough, they’re not nice?

Parent:                        Oh, I imagine you’d like them anytime, but they’re for a cough.

Child:                        Well, I like them in church.

Parent:                        Cough or not?

Child:                        I feel so good while I’m sitting next to you and kind of snuggling up,                                     chewing a cough drop.

Parent:                        Kind of good?

Child:                        Warm – like belonging…

Parent:                        Belonging?

Child:                        That’s the way I feel about church.  I belong here, where the music is and                                     where the words say that God loves me even if I am a little kid.

Parent:                        Even if?

Child:                        Well, I don’t have a job or anything like that, but God doesn’t seem to                                     mind.

Parent:                        No, God doesn’t seem to mind at all.  In fact, I’d venture to say that God                                     likes very much to have you in church, unemployed though you might be.

Child:                        Cough drops and all?

Parent:                        Cough drops and all.

There you have it.  Cough drops in church and a king who stood in the middle of the street and danced before the LORD with all his might!  Yes God is great and life is good. So here’s an idea.  Why don’t we sing a song so we can go out and enjoy the blessings that are waiting for us in God’s wonderful world.  I know.  Why don’t we end by singing “Joy To The World.”  Just kidding.  Or maybe I’m not.  Amen.

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes

July 15, 2012