Did you know that Thursday, September 16 was International Day of Listening?   I had never heard of that before.  I figured there must be a lot of good jokes about listening on the internet, so I googled it, and International Day of Listening came up in the search.  I thought to myself, now that is a good joke!  An international day of listening–just thinking about how unlikely it is that two people from different perspectives in today’s world would actually sit and listen respectfully to each other.  It’s almost enough to make us laugh out loud.  But it turns out, the International Day of Listening is a real thing.  It happens every year, third Thursday of September and is sponsored by the International Association of Listening.  But guess what I discovered when I tried to learn more about it?  There is another international day of listening coming up in November, sponsored by some other group.  Pretty ironic that the listening groups are not listening to each other!

As far-fetched as an actual International Day of Listening sounds, in a way, that is exactly what today is.  World Communion Sunday is a day when all Christians around the globe come together to be nourished by one common source, to “welcome with meekness the imparted word that has the power to save our souls,” quoting our key verse for today.  Truly there can be no communion without listening.

The practices of listening well and doing good are deeply connected.   Last month, and especially last week, we were working on our memory verse from James 2:17, “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”  God’s word should not just go in one ear and out the other.  It should go in our ears—and then come out of us in the form of more godlike words and actions!  James speaks of the gospel, calling it the imparted word that has the power to save our souls, and goes on to give examples of how this word planted in us should transform us.  What kind of fruit will the word of God planted in us go on to produce?

Well, for one thing, it will go on to produce good works.  Last weekend, we partnered with Help Build Hope to build all the walls for a Habitat for Humanity House.  We started by cutting the lumber on Friday afternoon, and less than 48 hours later, the walls were loaded on to a truck, headed for Georgia.  This week I got to talk to the director of the Troup County, Georgia Habitat for Humanity agency.  Her name is Sandie, and when I called her on Monday morning, the very first thing she said was, “Thank you and your amazing church so much!  The men just finished unloading the walls, and you all did a great job.  This is such a blessing!”  She had the kind of sweet southern accent that makes you want to do more for her, she’s just so nice!

When I told her that we would like to mail one of our prayer shawls to her so it could be presented to the homeowners, she said, “Stop now, you’re making me start to cry!”  Then when I told her it was one of the children in our congregation who suggested sending the prayer shawl, she was really touched.  The imparted word has the power to not only save our souls, it causes grace, peace and encouragement to multiply.  Good things happen when we allow the word of God to transform us and move us to serve others in need.  It’s like ripples on the surface of the water that keep forming, long after the stone you threw has sunk.  Good begets good.

But the opposite is also true.  Bad begets bad!  That is why James says, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.”  James is not saying we should never get angry.  But he is cautioning us against anger that is impulsive and destructive.  Our quick judgments and harsh words, our angry reactions–these too cause ripples to form, long after the initial words we spoke.  These are not the kind of ripples that bring about things like hope, justice, peace, and joy.

A few years ago I was asked to fill out a reference form for a young woman in my church who wanted to go to Honduras and work for a year in a Christian orphanage.   The form asked all the usual questions, how long have you known the applicant, describe his or her commitment to Jesus, etc.  And then it asked a question that really made me think:  Do you consider the applicant a peacemaker, or does the applicant require the presence of a peacemaker?  In other words, is this person you’re recommending quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to get angry?  OR are they a little on the volatile side, and they need a person like that to help them get along with others?

Are you a peacemaker?  Or do you require the presence of a peacemaker?  In other words, do you like to throw gasoline on the fires around you—or would you rather join the fire brigade?  James no doubt wants us to join the fire brigade.  To engage in good works that heal and restore, not to engage in rash or hurtful actions and speech that divide and damage.  Being a peacemaker is not about preserving the status quo.  You can’t make an omelet without cracking some eggs.  But it is about working for justice in a way that honors God.  As Ruth Bader Ginsberg said, ““Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”

Today on World Communion Sunday, Christians around the world will participate in the sacrament of communion.  Our denominational labels and theological distinctives divide us; the sacrament of communion unites us.  This meal is an act of listening, listening to the Word of God that says, “Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”  The Word of God that says, I am light, and I am life.  Because I live you also will live.  The Word of God that says, “Peace I leave with you.  My peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives.  So do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.”  When life upsets us, or treats us unfairly, or makes us want to throttle someone, we don’t have to lash out in anger.  We can trust.  We can listen.  We can express our feelings to God, and allow God’s presence to help us navigate each difficult season.  We can receive the bread and the juice like manna from heaven—just enough sustenance and grace for this day, giving us what we need to do the good God is calling us to do today, trusting God to be at work for good beyond the confines of our day.

One of the things I love about our United Methodist communion liturgy is how it connects the communion meal—God’s good gift to us—with us living out our faith—our good gift to the world.  We ask God to bless these gifts of bread and wine, and make them be for us the body and blood of Christ, that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood.  This holy meal brings about peace between us and God, so we can bring peace in the world.

We also pray that this meal would make us one with God, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world.  One day, Christ will come again, and our good works will no longer be needed.  But until then, the communion meal quickens us to do the ministry Christ would have us do.

And then, at the end of our liturgy, we give thanks for this holy mystery, for this sacrificial meal.  We ask God to help us go into the world, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, so we can give ourselves for others.  Good begets good.  Like ripples in the pond, the communion meal is meant to resound in echoes of blessing that reach far and wide beyond ourselves.

James has some harsh words for us to think about in this passage.  “If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.”  What we say and do matters!  Jesus, the word made flesh, has come into our lives.  Will we let him do the work of transforming us?  It is not enough to profess our faith with our lips, because a lot of other talk comes from our lips, too, not all of it good.  But hopefully we’re getting better!  If our faith isn’t bringing out an inward transformation that is manifested in changed outward behavior, it is not true faith.

We cannot offer to the world what we do not have.  So let’s be quick to listen today, and hear the voice of God, inviting us to the communion table.  Inviting us to confess our sin and be forgiven.  Inviting us to name our pain, and receive comfort.  Inviting us to turn and see that we have a friend in Jesus who will never leave us or forsake us.  Inviting us to taste and see that the Lord is good.  And then, inviting us to be channels of that goodness into the world.  Thanks be to God.  Amen.