Sermon for June 17th, 2018

Psalm 4:1-8

To the leader: with stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

1 Answer me when I call, O God of my right!
    You gave me room when I was in distress.
    Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.

2 How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame?
    How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies?Selah
3 But know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for himself;
    the Lord hears when I call to him.

4 When you are disturbed,[a] do not sin;
    ponder it on your beds, and be silent.Selah
5 Offer right sacrifices,
    and put your trust in the Lord.

6 There are many who say, “O that we might see some good!
    Let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord!”
7 You have put gladness in my heart
    more than when their grain and wine abound.

8 I will both lie down and sleep in peace;
    for you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety.

Psummer of Psalms - Psalm 4

A businessman from the East Coast was traveling in Texas, and quickly grew tired of hearing about how everything is "bigger" in Texas. The skies are bigger here, the trucks are bigger, the steaks are bigger, the cities are bigger, the buildings are taller, and so on.

In the hotel bar one night he orders a beer (which, of course it comes in a 32oz glass). The bartender proceeds to talk about how much bigger everything is in Texas. After downing a few of these giant beers, the businessman asks the bartender for directions to the nearest restroom. "It's down the hall to the right." The business man stumbles down the hall, and through the door...to the left. Which, of course, is the door to the swimming pool. Back at the bar, the bartender hears a giant splash, followed by a terrified scream: "Don't flush, Don't flush!"

That joke had absolutely nothing to do with Psalm 4, but today is Father's day...and that was one of my Father's favorite jokes. Mike Locke was a master of what we in the business refer to as the "Dad joke."

My Dad was also a master of the "bedtime story," and some of my earliest memories are of curling up next to him on the sofa while he read to me, usually something from J.R.R. Tolkien or Isaac Asimov. It didn't take much before I was fast asleep, and he would pick me up and carry me to bed. Sometimes I pretended to be asleep just so he would pick me up and carry me to bed.