Year C, Pentecost, 2019 – “Hey, Children, What’s That Sound?”

June 5, 2019 / Molly Douthett / Bonus Track, Feedback Loop, Pentecost

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Greetings!! Welcome to More Than Hearing! This Sunday is The Big Day for the life of the church, and we are doing something different with the podcast this week in preparation for it. We decided to forego the usual format and instead talk about why we developed this show, how it has effected our own experiences, and ways that Multiple Intelligence Theory already has a home in Scripture.

We have three years of illustrations and special effects stored up for Pentecost, and those are linked below if you are looking for something specific for using this Sunday. We also have some work done specifically on John 14, which is the Gospel lesson for this Sunday. Those also are linked below.

Pentecost is a day in the life of the church where everything shifts in a fundamental way. Up to that day, the disciples were simply waiting, as Jesus had instructed them to do. Then, he ascended, and —- well, they waited some more. I sometimes wonder how they spent that time? We know what’s coming (or what came), so we have much to do to get ready and a lot of it involves the color red. Still, I believe that the Spirit’s inspiration can lead us to explore this old story with new ideas and a breath of fresh air. Pretty much what the Spirit did way back then!

Past Pentecost and John 14 Podcasts

Why We’re Doing This [02:52]

I really like the third definition of inspiration linked above – to inhale. Inhaling is literally “in-spiring” so for the purposes of Pentecost, we might think of inspiration as “in-Spiriting.” (There’s some WORD smart illustration for the day!) Inspiration is behind this entire venture, because while David and I wanted to do a podcast together, we didn’t know what to do a podcast about. He remembered a time when we got together with a colleague and friend in Dayton to discuss an idea she had brought home from a conference led by Tom Troeger. It was a great idea, but as it turned out, it was an even greater opportunity to have coffee with Julia! So, years later, David suggested we blend Multiple Intelligence Theory and the Revised Common Lectionary and see what came out of it. Ta – DAH! Inspiration!

How We’ve Used This [14:01, 27:08]

As we’ve been doing this podcast, our methods and our website have evolved, but the basic reasons have not changed. In using MIT, we have the chance to engage people by opening doors into imaginations, hearts, and souls that would otherwise be closed to access. Since one of the hallmarks of Pentecost is the sudden speaking in languages that are not native to the speaker, we get the opportunity to try “speaking” in other “languages” to reach people every week! Trying these illustrations and special effects engage the preacher, too. We have discovered our own sermons and worship leadership have been enhanced, and we’ve found ourselves pulled out of preaching ruts at times. Trying some of our more “gee whiz” special effects have led our congregations to deeper engagement and hopefully, has sent them out with the Word of God planted in fresh soil inside them, inspired to understand Scripture in a new way.

Ways Scripture Already Does This [13:12, 21:32]

A couple months ago, David came across a book called Creating Holy Spaces: Worship Visuals for the Revised Common Lectionary by Delia Halverson (Author), and Karen Appleby  (Author). The authors use EYE smart and Myers-Briggs personality inventory throughout their work in an effort to engage congregations with the RCL texts. One of the parts of the book that caught David’s eye was a section that traced how Jesus used multiple intelligences to teach, preach, and minister. For the past eight weeks or so, we’ve been adding a section to our own podcast that looks at how we think Jesus may have used these intelligences. In today’s podcast we talk about the parable he told of The Two Builders and how EYE, MATH, BODY, PEOPLE, SELF, NATURE, and even MUSIC smart can be utilized as this story is told (WORD). We also think the prophets did much the same thing, especially Jeremiah’s story about the Potter and the Clay.

We hope that as you listen to today’s podcast and go back to see what we’ve done with Pentecost and John 14 in years past, you will be “in-Spirited” to lead your people in ways that are fresh, fun, memorable, and enriching!

MUSIC smart BONUS: The title of the show is part of the chorus from For What It’s Worth by Buffalo Springfield.

Image from Seeking Truth Design by Heather Thum-Gerber, used by permission.

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