Sur-THRIVING The Flood

9-13-2026 - Genesis 6:5-22; 8:6-12; 9:8-17 ... "A few years ago it may have felt like we were doing our best at surviving, maybe I’m biased, but I think those days are behind us. Sure, I know the storms will still knock on our door, but St. Luke, we are gonna sur-thrive! (yes, I just made up that word.)  We are image-bearers of Christ’s love, doves one and all, called, gathered, and sent out of this ark every Sunday—sur-thriving in, with, and through the Spirit out into a world that is hungry and looking for you to take flight; so go and come back and let us set free any and all who are fearful."

Resources Used: Genesis for Normal People: A Guide to the Most Controversial, Misunderstood, and Abused Book of the Bible by Peter Enns & Jared Byas

www.workingpreacher.org 

Thanks for listening! May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13) For more information about Keith visit www.authorkeithlong.com or St. Luke Lutheran Church visit www.stlukecg.org

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Welcome to the Pocket Pastor Podcast, Sermons on Demand, a show for those on the go, instant inspiration, questions for the quest, strength for the soul. I'm Keith Long, and this Pulpit to Your Pocket preaching comes to you from St. Luke Lutheran Church, a congregation of the ELCA in Cottage Grove, Minnesota. For more information about me, check out authorkeithlong.com. To see what we've got going on at St. Luke, visit us in person at the corner of 70th and Hinton in Cottage Grove Sundays at 9 a.m. Or check out Saint LukeCG.org for more information. Thanks for listening. I'm honored to be part of your spiritual journey. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. When it comes to storytelling, there are a few stories that rival storm survival. At the St. Luke Coffee House this last week, our icebreaker was sharing about memorable storms. About halfway through our discussion, someone brought up the big one, the 1965 Tornado. The most memorable story of the 65 Tornado was a tale about a pregnant woman holding a baby in her arms as she went to the basement while her husband was busy painting the ceiling. After the storm, the mother was buried under the stairs, but alive. And the baby in her womb survived too. Her child that were that was in her arms was nowhere to be seen, however, nor was her husband. But both had also survived. The child was found near a tree in the neighborhood unharmed, and her husband made it too, although there was no update on that newly painted ceiling, but I feared the worst. We could probably fill the remainder of this morning with our survival stories about floods, tornadoes and all. And I'd be eager to hear them and share a few of my own. The big one in the ancient world was known simply as the flood. When people brought it up in ancient coffee houses, everyone who lived had a story to share, locals and travelers alike. That's because there had been lots of floods in the ancient world. The size and scope are unknown, but for anyone who's ever had a flooded basement, the length of the story doesn't depend on the scope of the damage. And we have to remember that these flood stories, particularly the one in Genesis, was told as if it were a global event. And maybe it literally was. But ancient peoples, including the Israelites, had no notion of a round globe. Their world was flat. It ended where the horizon ended. This was the flooding of their world. But their world included only what they could see, what was known to them. Peter ends from the book Genesis for Normal People. So when the Bible says that the earth was corrupt and was flooded for the Israelites, earth was what they could see from their earthbound perspective. That corruption and flood is handled differently throughout these cultural tellings. But many told of similar heroes who built an ark and survived the flood, be it the angry gods of the epoch of Gilgamesh or here, by the Hebrew god who felt like there had been a huge mistake, a design flaw that needed immediate correction. But what would the god who evaluated the creation in Genesis I as very good be so upset about? Well, by the time we reach Genesis six, let's just say that God has come to see the increasingly great wickedness of humankind. One human murdered a brother, another human pledged an increasing spiral of violence and revenge against anyone who threatened him. Lesser divine beings who breached the divide between heavenly and earthly realms had offspring with human women called the Nephilim. Hatred and violence expanded to a whole new level among peoples and nations. For starters. Again, from Genesis for Normal People by Peter Ens. The theological reason given for the flood was it was God's response to the human failure of reflecting God in the world as God's image bearers. So yeah. Oops. However, while the operator errors of humankind were egregious, our version of God's tantruming like a toddler knocking over his blocks also was different in at least one key way. God leaves the rainbow as a sign and promise that never again will this happen. God will never destroy the earth or its people like this again. No other accounts mention a God with regret for having gone overboard. God leaves the bow, which in the ancient world, the first thing you'd think of at the mention of a bow was the weapon. A bow and arrow. In this case, the rainbow, the bow, and the arrows, lightning bolts. Here God's bow of warfare is retired on its side on the horizon. No more warfare against creation. So that's a little about Noah's survival story from The Big One. What does this mean for us today? While we rightfully appreciate those beautiful rainbows that appear after storms, there is another sign that brings as much meaning to me today as the rainbow. The dove. Like the butterfly or the cardinal for many of us today, the dove has been with us a long, long time as the spirit's sign of peace and presence. Recall it was a dove that descended on Jesus at his baptism, a sign of the Holy Spirit, and at the beginning of creation the spirit, the wind or breath of God's ruach, hovered over the waters like a bird hovers over her nest. And then again here in Genesis Noah uses a bird to bring him good news. Then he sent out the dove from him to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground, but the dove found no place to set its foot, and it returned to him to the ark. He waited another seven days, and again he sent out the dove from the ark, and the dove came back to him in the evening, and there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth. According to this story, God's people failed as God's image bearers. They didn't take the job of reflecting God very seriously. But those days are behind us ever since the dove went looking for and found new growth. Whether you take the story literally or metaphorically, God's creation is here to stay. So I propose that we remember that dove as we recall and survive our storms. That we commit to being the image bearers of God, full of peace, truth, and love, and of course the Holy Spirit, who is perpetually seeking new growth within and wherever we are, for we bear the image of the dove, Saint Luke. And as the Church may we go forth reflecting this and other signs of Christ's love to each other and of the Creator's presence and create. Seek, know, serve, pray. Be as peacemaking doves in a frequently flooded earth. Whether it's the big one from nineteen sixty five or the mythological flood with the Ark, let us be as doves, called, gathered, and sent in baptism to be filled with the spirit of creation, as we seek, find, create, and care for new life, always on the look for signs of growth and co creating with God. A new program year is upon us, Saint Luke, and new beginnings are all around. You don't have to look far today to see and experience signs of new presence and growth from our new liturgy to learn, sing, and recite to those freshly plucked opportunities to pray and connect with one another. May each newness help the flood waters recede in your life and the life of this earth, for we are the image bearers of Jesus Christ, and his spirit, like a dove, is truly creating new beginnings here and everywhere through our many and vibrant gifts. Speaking of gifts, I hope you checked out the ministry fair after worship, signs of a very committed and active congregation. Thank you. A few years ago it may have felt like we were doing our best at surviving. Maybe I'm biased, but I think those days are behind us. Sure, I know the storms will still knock on our door, but Saint Luke, we are gonna surthrive. Yes, I just made up that word. We are image bearers of Christ's love, doves one and all, called, gathered, and sent out of this ark every Sunday, sur thriving in, with and through the Spirit, out into a world that is hungry and looking for you to take flight. So go and come back, and let us set free any and all who are fearful. Let us trust in the signs and promises of God given us in baptism and celebrated every Sunday and beyond. In Jesus' name. Amen.