Delivered on September 1, 2024.
Nicene Creed Part 4
Bring the ingredients for slime.
It’s my tradition after the prayer of the day to bring a message to all of God’s children. And I want to continue today talking about what we started last week – the Nicene Creed. We began two weeks ago thinking of the Nicene Creed as a rule – describing what we say about God and what we share in worship and with each other. It came out of a conversation a bunch of people had 1700 years ago about how God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit were united together. There was a time when someone thought that God the Father/Creator was on-top and with Jesus – and the Holy Spirit – below – like a ladder. But the supporters of the Creed said no – Jesus, the Father, the Holy SPirit – all are together because there’s no part of God that hasn’t experienced what our life is like. If you look at the Creed, you’ll notice it’s split into 3 parts – just like the Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So we’re going to focus on that first part this week by first making slime.
Now slime is a lot of fun. It’s gooey, oozes, and can be made into all kinds of shapes. There’s also a lot of different recipes for slime but here’s one I found and I have the ingredients laid out in front of me.
2 (4-ounce) bottles washable school glue, such as Elmer’s (see note for variations)
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 to 3 tablespoons saline solution (i.e., contact lens solution), divided
So we have all the ingredients. They’re right in front of us. They’re the building blocks of slime. But do we have slime yet? Nope! No idea. We still need to mix everything together – to follow the recipe – and to get our hands dirty.
And that’s what the first part of the Nicene Creed is about. God the Father – God as Creator – is a God who creates. A God who gets involved. A God who gets God’s hands dirty, so to speak, in our lives and in our world. God isn’t far away when God creates. God is right here – right now – and God is still creating new things in our lives and in our world. We can see ourselves as part of the ingredients of what God wants the world to be like. And God promises through God’s presence, love, and grace to work in our own lives so that God’s love is made real in our world.
So let’s mix things up and remember that God isn’t far away; God isn’t done creating; and that God is active, present, and with us even now.
Pour the glue into a medium bowl.
Add the baking soda: Add the baking soda to the glue mixture and stir until smooth.
Add the contact lens solution: Pour in 2 tablespoons of the contact lens solution and stir slowly. The mixture should begin to harden, becoming stringy.
Mix until a ball forms: Continue mixing slowly until a ball of slime forms.
Knead by hand: Pick up the slime and work between your two hands, until smooth. If the slime is particularly slimy, work in another 1/2 tablespoon of contact lens solution as needed.