Let us pray, O God, we gather from our various journeys as your people. Open our hearts, our minds and our spirits – that in our seeking…that in our seeking we might be met by you. Amen.

“Everybody’s Looking for Something.”

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been looking forward to today for a long time. For today is a day of homecoming – today is a day of excitement – today is a day of celebrating our family of faith – and today is a day of beginning – as we kick off this new church year together. And I am extremely thrilled to be a part of it – along with all of you!

In case you haven’t noticed, I am really pumped because I am convinced that this is going to be a wonderfully great year for First Congregational Church.

God is doing some amazing things here – and it is part of our task to discovery them and uplift them with praise-filled living! Today we are beginning a series of sermons called, “Images and Identity for the People of God,” as we explore several shaping symbols and images that suggest to us a fuller participation in the Christian life.

We are much more than what we eat. We are what we chew on in our minds eye and what we are becoming in the eye of God.

This morning the image is that of a seeker. So what is it we are looking for anyway? A modern image is that of a remote T.V. changer – I love to be able to search through all the different channels at the push of a button until I find the program I want to watch. And then even sometimes I’ll flip back and forth watching two or three shows at the same time which, by the way, drives Michelle crazy.

Friends, everybody’s looking for something! Some people are looking for the perfect spouse – which doesn’t exist. Some people long for the good old days – which may not have always been all the good.

Some people are looking for a miraculous healing. Like the Syrophoenician woman who begged Jesus to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” But she answered him, “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Then he said to her, “For saying that, you may go – the demon has left your daughter.” So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him.

And we’ve all know people that have longed for such healing and in some cases the miracle comes and in others it doesn’t - but we need to remember that all physical healings are temporary. We will deal with healings in another sermon at some point. But some people - on the other end of the spectrum - are looking to hit the lotto.

Winston Churchill was reported to have asked an actress,

“Would you marry a man for a million dollars?’ “Of course,” she replied. “For five hundred?” “Of course not! What do you think I am?” “We have already established that, my dear,” said Churchill. “Now we are only trying to determine the degree.”

But it wasn’t that long ago there was a T.V. show where I think someone was offered a million dollars to marry somebody - and all this reality T.V. where people are searching for this or for that. Who wants to be a millionaire? You see, it is true that our identity is shaped by that for which we search and that toward which we strive. If it is money, then like it or not, we are materialistic.

Some people are looking for a more meaningful job. Some people are just looking for more meaning. Within the last couple of weeks the Today Show did a segment on a minister who believes he is the second coming of Christ.

I happened to be watching this early in the morning when the Today Show came on and I could hardly believe my ears. But this man believes that Jesus Christ came into him, a number of years ago and that he is in fact Jesus Christ for the world today. Now people are flocking to this particular minister and he started churches across the country and thousands of people are going for this. Not only going for it - they are giving all kinds of money and giving up their life savings and in a few cases people have given their businesses to this man.

A couple of day ago in preparing for this morning, I tried to do a web-search so I could tell you that minister’s name and a little bit more about him – but I came up empty handed. Everybody’s looking for something.

Too many parents are looking for too many abducted or lost children. Too many families are looking for victims of natural disasters, war and terrorism. Some searches are so monumental that they consume the searcher. And some searches are so puny and yet so frustrating.

Haven’t you ever lost something like an earring or a tool? And you spend an inordinate amount of time looking for it? Everybody’s looking for something.

Just recently I was helping hang some curtains in one of the girl’s rooms - and I lost one of the screws – and it was not the first time I was missing a screw or two. And I ended up spending five or ten minutes looking for that stupid screw before I could finish the project. Friends, everybody’s looking for something! And almost everyone is looking for happiness. But we’ll leave that elusive butterfly for another sermon. Because I know that I haven’t scratched the surface of at least half the things you are probably looking for. And that’s O.K. – for only you know what they really are.

Sociologist, Philip Slater, suggests a rather frantic image for us in our time when he says,

“Western civilization is a person running with increased speed through an air-sealed tunnel in search of additional oxygen.”

Now, I’m not sure we’re that desperate – in fact I would suggest that our searches may be more alike than different – when it comes to the key elements of our life. Your search this morning and for your life is unique but perhaps in a general way there are some directions that fit for us all.

In the words of theologian, Frederick Buechner,

“We search for a self to be. We search for other selves to love. We search for work to do. And since even when to one degree or another we find these things, we find also that there is still something crucial missing which we have not found, we search for that unfound thing too, even though we do not know its name or where it is to be found or even if it is to be found at all.”

That is part of the mystery of the journey itself which is ours to pursue. To be human is to be both filled and unfulfilled.

On this homecoming Sunday the Peanuts gang offers yet another image from a cartoon in which Linus is out in left field wherein the grass is rather overgrown and he says, “I want to help the team and I don’t mind playing left field – but I wish I knew where home plate was?”

Haven’t there been times in our lives when we’ve been out in left field, as it were, and we couldn’t get any bearings for where our true spiritual home was?

Recall the words of Proverbs which John Davidson read for us,

“Yes, if you cry out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures; then you will find the knowledge of God.”

To which Jesus adds the Biblical image of a true seeker from the passage in Matthew,

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

Unfortunately, some people have stifled their sense of search – they are numb to life – they have little to live for and simply go through the motions of daily living. While others fill the void within with the wrong things.

I am increasingly amazed at the variety of things with which people consume their focus. I don’t have to name all the things – you know them.

But to be on a journey of search this morning – is to be onto something special – even though we don’t know exactly what it is. Each of us has a name – it is the outward mark of our identity. Mine happens to be David Young. And for those of us whose journey includes Christ – our faith name is Christian.

But what is your spiritual name – the inner part of you that represents your real search – and your deepest longings?

Our congregational ancestors in the faith were called Pilgrims. Perhaps it is a name we can re-claim today – as seekers and searchers – not for a new land as it was for them – but for a new identity within.

In your pilgrimage of faith – who are you today – really? The name of your search helps name your identity. What are you really looking for in the deep-down places of your soul? What do we truly value and want? Because that’s the price we will pay.

You know, some people are looking for a church with all the answers. I know about a church in Minnesota that launched an ad campaign to encourage people to ask questions and genuinely search.

One ad, showing a picture of Jesus said, “He died to take away your sins, not your mind.” Another, pictured a man with his mouth taped shut and said, “There is only one problem with religions that have all the answers. They don’t allow questions.”

That is certainly not the case here. We do have a foundation of faith to stand on and some answers. But we do encourage questions and ours is a thinking persons’ church – ours is a progressive, open and affirming church. We invite all who would join us in a journey of search.

This church always has and always will welcome seekers. When you are a part of a faith community – you haven’t arrived – there is always more to unfold. And there is no right or perfect church to be found. In the course of her reading, Michelle came across this insight,

“Church is for the search. Wouldn’t it be better if we said we were going to search.”

That’s a great way to understand our identity. That as the people of God – we gather for search each Sunday morning. And the mystery of our faith is that in our searching – it is the Lord who searches us out.

You see, the world knows our name, our pedigree, our social security number, our insurance coverage, and the world knows our driving record, our job performance, our credit rating and our education.

But it is the Lord who knows our hearts, our deepest yearnings, our fears, our hopes, and our pain. The Lord knows our need for him and draws us to him.

We are known and loved! And so we remember Jesus’ words in the sermon on the mount,

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

Everyone’s looking for something! As we embrace the image of being a seeker this morning, perhaps we will search for a more real relationship with God and a more genuine relationship with family and friends – such that our care for others and ourselves – will be lifted up in the love of God, which is our true spiritual home.

Wittgenstein observed that at times we find ourselves silent and without adequate words, because homecoming does not involve coming to know any new facts about the world but merely a changed perception. Human existence ceases to be a problem to be solved and becomes a mystery to be enjoyed.

The mystery to be enjoyed and embraced is God’s love – because in the final analysis – it is that love which embraces us.

Home is where your heart is. Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Both are true. And both tell us who we are.

In our search for God there is always a going out and a coming in – much as there was for the prodigal son. There is a sense of homecoming – a sense of warmth and acceptance.

In the words of an old hymn,

“Coming home, coming home. Open wide thine arms of love, Lord, I’m coming home.”

Everybody’s looking for something! What are you looking for today – really? May God bless us in our identity as seekers and searches – and I look forward to seeing most of you next Sunday in search!

Amen!