Epiphany (observed early)
January 4, 2026
John demonstrated how an electric guitar sounds with and without being plugged into an amplifier.
So what does all this have to do with Sunday morning at Seekers, where we usually talk about God and living a good life and trying to be kind and helpful to people?
Here’s my idea: I think that each of you, and each one of us here, and in fact every single person in the world, is like a beautiful musical instrument. We’re all created by God to have a particular sound and personality, and be funny or smart in our own ways, and we all have special gifts. God wants each of us to play the best music we can with our instrument.
But here’s something I’ve noticed. Sometimes, I might have a really great idea, and really want to share it, but I’m not confident about it, or I don’t know how to get it out there, or maybe people really aren’t listening. So I need an amplifier! It doesn’t matter how well I play that guitar if nobody can hear it. I need to express myself in a way that people will notice, and respond to.
Here’s something else I’ve noticed. I need help to do this. That guitar needed all kinds of help – the amplifier, the patch cords, the overdrive box, the power cord that plugged into the wall, and of course electricity. Our families and communities and churches and schools can be our helpers. We don’t have to do it alone. And that’s a really good thing, because do you know how much I know about what makes an amplifier work? this much. And how much do I know about how electricity works? Pretty much nothing! — I’m a musician, not a scientist. If it wasn’t for the help of other people, who are good at different things I’m not good at, I wouldn’t have an amplifier and an overdrive box and a patch cord and a wall socket to plug the amp into that delivers electricity. Making that great big sound actually takes a whole community of people who each contribute something.
Here’s an example from my own life that shows this. I’ve always loved animals. Every since I can remember, I wanted to hang around animals and get to know them, and have cats and dogs as part of my family. When I got a little older, I realized that a lot of animals have a really hard time in our world, because people don’t treat them well. They use them for food and clothing and entertainment and medical experiments, as if animals belonged to us, to do whatever we wanted with them. That made me very sad and very angry, and I wanted to speak out about it. But one voice speaking out doesn’t do much good. I had to find a community that would amplify my voice and help me say what I needed to say. And sure enough, I discovered that there were a number of communities who felt just the way I did about cruelty to animals, and welcomed me to join them. As a result, I can be part of making a real difference for the animals I love. We don’t all say the same things or have the same gifts. I’m good with words and, and others are good at being brave and making protests and going undercover to expose the cruel treatment of animals. Their gifts are like electricity for me. They provide the power for what I say.
And one more thing. Sometimes it’s good to imagine there really is a setting called 11 that we can use when we absolutely have to speak out and be heard. A lot of us at Seekers turn it up to 11 quite often, as a matter of fact. We refuse to sit back and pretend that bad stuff isn’t happening to our neighbors and our country and our planet. We also insist that love and joy are what God wants for us. So you might need a very powerful amplifier someday. You might have to turn it up to 11.
By the way, not every instrument needs an amplifier. We’re now going to hear Deborah play an instrument that sounds beautiful all by itself, which will teach you never to take a sermon literally.
(Deborah played an unamplified harp solo for the offertory)