San Williams, Presenter

I Chronicles 28:20; 29:1-6, 9

"From Dismay to Joy"

Introduction to Reading

Last week we launched our Capital Campaign, which will culminate on Commitment Sunday, May 20.  We've branded our campaign "God's Plan: Our Hands," and the campaign is for the purpose of accomplishing extensive renovations of our facility. During this important season in the life of our congregation, we're looking at some of the capital campaigns recorded in scripture.  Last week we looked at the capital campaign in Exodus 25 to build the Tabernacle.  This morning we consider yet another capital campaign.  This is the one recorded in I Chronicles, and it tells about the capital campaign to build the Temple in Jerusalem.

King David had the vision for the Temple, but David was not allowed to make his vision a reality. The Temple was to be a house of peace, of prayer, and because David was a warrior with blood on his hands, the task to build the Temple fell to David's son, Solomon.  In the verses immediately preceding the ones we'll read today, David reveals the Master Plan for the Temple.  He lays the whole plan before Solomon down to the forks and cups.  Our reading picks up at this point.

Read I Chron. 28:20; 29:1-6, 9.

Picture the scene.  David, still strong but now with some gray in his beard and arthritis in his knees, stands with his arm around his young son's shoulders. With his son by his side, David  shares his dream for a holy house built for the Lord. David can't contain his excitement. He tells his son about the courtyards, the porticos, the inner chambers, the altars, the furnishings.  The more expansive David becomes in revealing the plan for the Temple, the more Solomon slumps in dismay. He is simply overwhelmed by the scope of the project David has presented.  Solomon may have wisdom, but he fears that he doesn't have the wherewithal to accomplish the plan that his father has set before him. Understandably, his initial response to David's plan for a capital campaign is one of dismay and fear

We can relate, right?  The Master Plan that has been presented to our congregation is overwhelming in scope. Let's be honest, experts in church capital campaigns say that, based on data collected from thousands of church campaigns around the country, a good campaign will raise two to two-and-a-half times a church's annual budget. The figure we have presented to the congregation is eight times our annual budget. You've seen that bumper sticker, "If you're not appalled, you're not paying attention."  Well, if you're not dismayed at the scope of this campaign, then you're probably not paying attention.

 I hope you're using the Daily Devotional that our Spiritual Awareness Team has prepared for the campaign. The devotional last Friday stated the matter bluntly:  "Some of us may be wondering, even doubting, if UPC should undertake such a project as has been presented.  You may feel overwhelmed or question its necessity.  You may be asking yourself, 'Are these really God's plans?'"  I don't know about you, but I'm one of those who has felt just such misgivings and asked myself these very questions.  Like Solomon, our initial response to a plan that seems beyond our capacity to achieve is likely to be one of dismay, fear and doubt.

So David, sensing his son's reluctance, slaps the lad on the back and says, "Be strong and of good courage, and act. Do not be afraid or dismayed; for the Lord God, my God, is with you.  God will not fail you or forsake you, until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished."  David's word of encouragement to his bewildered son is a word that runs like a thread tying all the scriptures together.  Abraham and Sarah are told that they are to be the father and mother of a great nation even though they are old and barren.  "Impossible," they cry.  Then comes the word of encouragement:  "Do not be afraid, with God all things are possible." Or remember Moses who had a vision and a heard a voice telling him to go to Pharaoh and let the Hebrew children go. "That's impossible," Moses responds. "Who am I to accomplish such a great thing?"   "Fear not, Moses, for I AM with you."  Then there's Mary expressing her astonishment to the angel Gabriel, "How can these things be?"  "Do not be afraid," the angel responds, "for with God nothing is impossible."  This pattern of dismay followed by reassurance is repeated so often in scripture that if you took the sixty-six books of the Bible and reduced them down to a single verse, it might the one from our reading this morning:  "Do not be afraid or dismayed. The Lord God is with you and God will not fail you or forsake you."  That's a verse we should each write on our hearts and carry with us, not merely through this particular campaign, but whenever life presents us with a challenge that seems beyond our ability.

But the practical minded among us may still ask:  What if we don't reach our goal?  As many of you have aptly noted, it's going to take more than faith and prayer to accomplish this plan.  What if we fall short?  Since baseball season is underway, let's draw a sports metaphor.  There will be times this season when a batter steps up to the plate with the intention of hitting a home run, because that would the best possible play for the team at this particular time. When the pitch is thrown, the batter swings for the fence. He aims to hit this one out of the ball park. It's possible, of course, that he'll fall short and get a double, but in baseball, a double is considered a good play. If the batter only gets to first base, well, that's a start.  Admittedly, we're swinging for the fence with this campaign.  If we hit a home run, it will be the best possible outcome. But if we end up with less than that, that's okay too. The confidence we're taking from David's encouragement to Solomon is that God will finish the plan and will stay with us until the work is done…sooner if possible, later if necessary.

Now notice that David not only offers encouragement, but he also steps forward and makes the first contribution.  David declares, "I have provided for the house of my God, so far as I was able."  But then he goes even further:  "In addition to all that I have provided for the holy house, I have a treasure of my own, and because of my devotion to the house of my God I give it to the house of my God."  In other words, David went over and above his regular giving.  He had accumulated personal assets, and out of his devotion he gave those resources as well. David is a model for what we call over-and-above giving. We all are asked to give annually to the ministry of the church. We couldn't exist without the annual gifts toward the work of the church. But a capital campaign calls for over-and-above giving.  It's is sacrificial. It stretches us.  Some of us can't stretch very much, and our gift, although sacrificial, may be quite modest.  Others of us, like David, have accumulated assets, and sacrificial giving for us will mean larger amounts. The amounts will vary greatly but the incentive to give sacrificially is the same for everyone: devotion to God and God's work. 

And look what happened.  David's generosity inspired the other leaders of the people to come forward to make their offering. "Then the leaders of the ancestral houses made their freewill offerings, as did also the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of the thousands…and the officers over the king's work. They gave for the service of the house of God…"  This principle of leadership was key to the success of the campaign to build the Temple, just as it's the key to the success of our campaign.  We Presbyterians understand the crucial role of leadership because it's a fundamental principle of Presbyterian polity.  This morning we are ordaining and installing elders and deacons.  These individuals are not better or more worthy Christians than others, but in order to carry out God's work we elect leaders who will set the pace, shape the mission and lead the way.  Likewise, some in our congregation have offered to make their gift to the campaign early, on May 3, in order to encourage and inspire the rest of us to make our offering.  The principle is as simple as it is sound: Generosity begets generosity.  Commitment of a few inspires the commitment of others.  That was clearly the case in the campaign to build the temple and it's still the case today.

So where did the capital campaign to build the Temple end?  It ended in great rejoicing. The campaign to build the Temple moved from dismay to encouragement to commitment to rejoicing. "Then," concludes the Chronicler, ""the people rejoiced because these had given willingly, for with single mind they had offered freely to the Lord; King David also rejoiced greatly."  Friends, raising the money and completing the renovation is not the only goal of the campaign.  The goal is a re-vitalized congregation--a congregation whose devotion to God has increased, whose trust in God's presence and power has grown, and whose confidence in God's plan for our church has deepened.  In short, the highest goal of the campaign is not renovation but doxology.  A transformed building without transformed hearts gains us nothing.  When all is said and done, we'll know our campaign is a success if the prayer on our lips is the one David prayed: "And now, our God, we give thanks to you and praise your glorious name."