Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to live in; who brings princes to naught, and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows upon them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble. To whom then will you compare me, or who is my equal? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see: Who created these? He who brings out their host and numbers them, calling them all by name; because he is great in strength, mighty in power, not one is missing.

Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, "My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God"? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted; but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:21-32 NRSV)

I am sometimes stunned at the easy way in which we Christians
are prone to viewing our relationship with God.
I mean, just a simple reading of the Isaiah passage, this morning,
should put the “fear of God” into ya.

“It is God who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;”

My fellow grasshoppers -- the basic proclamation of the faith:
That "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself"
Is an awesome proclamation.
It is awesome because it is this God,
the God of the Isaiah passage,
that we are talking about.
It is God who sits above the circle of the earth
who stretches out the heavens like a span
who spreads them like a tent to live in
who brings princes to naught
and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.
It is the Almighty God,
who is Jesus of Nazareth,
who came to preach the Good News,
to heal the sick
and to cast out the evil one.
GOD -- in capital letters --

We dare not take this too easily,
my friends.
Jesus is this Almighty God,
veiled in vestments of flesh and blood,
and we are as Grasshoppers in comparison to Him --
Or, as in the case of my title today,
No better than cats.

Would you pray with me.

[Centering Prayer]

When I was in Seminary at Duke Divinity I lived on the third floor
of a large apartment building.
It was a safe place, we all thought.
There was hardly ever in trouble
There were hardly ever in break-ins.
It was a “safe place,” we all thought.
And, so, it was a shock when, one night in late spring, I came up the
steps to the third landing only to find my apartment door standing open.
I had been robbed!

Fear gripped me.
I should have run down the steps to a friend’s apartment and called to cops, but I didn’t.
I wasn’t thinking.
Rather, I was terrified!
I was frightened NOT about the loss of stereo, TV, VCR, or computer.
I was frightened NOT about the possibility that I could get hurt.
No, I was terrified that my poor kitty, Tiggert, was hurt.

I dashed into the apartment, flipping on the lights
as I entered the living room, my heart racing in fear.
No sign of my cat anywhere!
“Tiggert!” I called out, my voice I knew, full of fear!
“Tiggert! Here boy!!!!!”

NOTHING.

No cat anywhere to be seen!
Tears streaming down my cheeks, I ran back outside,
and shouted “TIGGERT!”
I paused for a moment, then flew down the stairs, checking each floor’s
landing as I reached it. But, still, no cat.
I hit the ground floor and dashed out to the front of the building, calling
“Tiggert! Here boy!”
But, there was no sign of him. NOT ANYWHERE.

By this time I was really crying, afraid that my cat had run away in fear,
and was now cowering some place, afraid and cold!
I rounded the corner of the building, and stepped into the deep shadows
behind the apartment complex, and that was when I saw the long,
fluffy tail of Tiggert twitching around the corner of the
other end of the building!

I dashed toward him, but as I approached his tail vanished around the corner!
“Tiggert!”
I rounded the corner and what I saw stopped me dead in my tracks.
There, on the grass, was my tabby Maine Coon,
fur up,
tail twitching,
crouching low,
facing off 2 BIG, mean looking Tom Cats.
I could just see it, Tiggert would leap on one
and the other would leap on HIM!
In a moment I knew what to do.
I stepped BETWEEN my cat and the two stranger cats,
catching their attention as I moved into position.
Just then I noticed Tiggert inching forward to crouch between my legs, growling.
I clapped my hands together and shouted “GET!”
and the two Toms GOT.
I then leaned over and scooped up wayward kitty in my arms
and carried him to the safety of our apartment and a can of 9 Lives.

My friends, we are faced, today
With the startling dichotomy of our faith.
With, what at first glance, is nonsense --
But, upon deeper reflection,
Is truth beyond compare.
The Majestic God of the Isaiah passage
The Creator God of all that is,
The God who dwells with us as Jesus of Nazareth
who heals the sick
who casts out the demons
who teaches and preaches the Good News of God’s Saving Grace
The God, who could wipe us out with just the twitch of his left eyebrow
Is also the God who loves us,
who searches for us,
who, as Isaiah also says: “gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.”

Just as Tiggert got lost,
and I searched for him,
found him,
and scattered the stray cats that night.
So also God cares for us,
searches for us,
scatters the evil, stray “cats” of this life
and then gathers us to his breast
Feeds,
comforts,
loves,
and takes us home.
The God who created all that you see --
and all the wonders which you cannot see --
Does this for us.

Tiggert Got himself into a mess
But I found him,
and delivered him.

We get ourselves into messes,
and the One who could wipe us out with nary a second thought
Instead saves us,
Loves us,
and delivers us home.

As you come home today,
As you receive from the Table of the Lord the Means of Grace,
As you, by faith, eat and drink the elements of Communion
recieve the life transforming power,
the divine strength that will enable you to mount up
with wings like eagles,
Let us all give thanks to God for his loving grace
and the renewing strength which he gives us all
when we come to him in faith.

He has found us, and has scattered the straw cats.
Let us now respond.
Let us now act in faith.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
--Amen