Holy Mischief

Readings from the Message for the Third Day of Camp

Isaiah 1: 13-17

Psalm 70

Matthew 5:1-2, 6, 9-12

This sermon was preached by Fr. Daniel London at Camp Living Waters at Cookson Ranch in Blue Lake CA on Wednesday July 25, 2018.

“You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. You are in good company. God’s prophets have always gotten into this kind of trouble.” Matthew 5:10, 12

This morning I want to talk about the kind of trouble that God’s prophets got into and I actually want to invite us all to get into this kind of trouble, this trouble which I like to call “holy mischief.” In order to do this, we need to know what God’s trouble-making prophets stood for and what they were committed to. So who are God’s prophets? Some of you are named after God’s prophets, like Jonah, and Miriam. I’m named after a prophet who spent a night in a den full of lions, because he was causing too much holy mischief.

We heard from two of God’s prophets this morning: Jesus who is a prophet indeed, and also the great prophet Isaiah, who spoke on God’s behalf when he said, “I’m sick of your religion, religion, religion, while you go right on sinning…Learn to do good. Work for justice. Help the down-and-out. Stand up for the homeless. Go to bat for the defenseless.”

The prophets called God’s people to pray and to care for the poor and vulnerable because real prayer leads to action on behalf of those in need. That’s what the prophets stood for. And this message actually upset people who wanted to uphold the status quo and not be bothered by the needs of the weak and poor. This message caused holy mischief among those who went to worship only to feel comfortable and pious. These prophets provoked persecution and risked their own reputation and comfort by standing up for those in need, by defending the poor and the vulnerable.

If we had one more reading for today it would be from the book of James, who said, “Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight.” (James 1:27).

Prayer and worship are absolutely essential in order to experience God’s love and blessings, but, for the prophets, real prayer and worship must lead to action on behalf of those in need. For the prophets, prayer and worship needs to cause some holy mischief. And we’re called to make this holy mischief not in order to bring attention to ourselves, but in order to bring attention to those in need and in order to bring glory to God.

So what does “holy mischief” look like in your life? Maybe it looks like defending someone who is being bullied. Maybe it looks like befriending someone who is an outsider and who is considered “not cool.” Maybe it means speaking up for the dignity of people who are being mistreated or hurt or oppressed. Maybe it means speaking up for the dignity of the earth, which Pope Francis calls our sister who cries out to us of the harm we have inflicted on her by our irresponsible use and abuse of her resources. Maybe it looks like taking a risk and even risking criticism from people who think that faith and action don’t mix. That’s the kind of criticism that the prophets received. That’s the kind of holy mischief the prophets made and that’s the kind of trouble we are actually called to make as followers of the great prophet Jesus Christ. That’s the kind of trouble that makes heaven applaud. So I challenge you to speak out and stand up for those in need, even when others might criticize you. I challenge you to go make some holy mischief!