Rev. Tessie Mandeville
February 17, 2008
Christ Covenant MCC
Decatur, GA 30030

When I was a small child I can remember playing with my parents and my dad swinging me around in circles. And when he’d put me down and I’d re-gain my balance I’d say, “Again, daddy! Do that again!” As any child and adult would attest to, when something is fun, and life-giving and exciting, then you just want to do it again and again because it feels so good.

The singing duo Captain & Tennille captured this sentiment best in their love song, Do That To Me One More Time (Once Is Never Enough). Now I’m relatively sure that many of you here today know this song and I think we ought to sing a little bit of it.

Do that to me one more time
Once is never enough with a man like you
Do that to me one more time
I can never get enough
Of a man like you
Kiss me like you just did
Do that to me once again  

Pass that by me one more time
Once just isn’t enough for my heart to hear
Tell it to me one more time
I can never get enough while I got’ya near
Say those words again that you just did
Tell it to me once again

One of the great things about this love song is its versatility. When you sing, “Do that to me one more time once is never enough with a man like you” it works for you if you are a gay man, a bisexual or transgender person, or a heterosexual woman. For the rest of us, the lesbians, we know how to interpret and change the words to fit us. And I may I just say that Toni Tennille looks as lovely today as she always did!

But what, you might ask, does this have to with the somber season of Lent? I’m glad you asked. It has everything to do with our gospel story today because we are talking about doing something more than one more time. We are talking about conversion—being born again. Am I born again? You better believe it.

Today we find ourselves in the middle of a conversation with Nicodemus and Jesus about what it means to be born again. Nicodemus came to Jesus at night. For the children here this morning—he was the first Nick at Night long before the TV channel! Nicodemus wants to deepen his relationship with God; in fact he wants to see the realm of God. He wants more from life than he’s getting right now. Here he is, a Pharisee, one of the religious elite. Pharisees were religious people who followed the letter of the law; they were fastidiousness with the details of the law in their desire to be close to God. And it seems Nicodemus is a man who knows the law but realizes that something is still missing in his life. I think he saw something in Jesus that intrigued him. That made him come and ask questions.

Jesus tells Nicodemus that in order to see the realm of God and deepen his relationship with the Divine, he has to be born again. And because Nicodemus follows the letter of the law, which means he literally interprets whatever is said or written, he thinks he literally has to be born again but he knows he can’t enter into his mother’s womb a second time. It’s like he says to Jesus, “Pass that by me one more time, Jesus, once just isn’t enough for my heart to hear. I want to be born again. Help me understand how to do this.”

And Jesus says that being born again is about the spirit of God, not the letter of the law. Jesus says, “The wind, the Spirit of God, blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

The spirit of God is not something that we can grasp, or obtain, to put in a little box so that we can make sense of it. It blows where it will. In other words, the Spirit of God can come upon us, blow us around, turn us around, anytime and anyplace. And that, my friends, is conversion.

Conversion literally means, “to turn around.” Conversion is a willingness to change our perspective. It’s a change of view. It’s taking a risk so we can try on a new way of seeing something. It’s letting go of the rules and those voices telling us what we “should do” and turning toward God who loves us and is always turning toward us. And when we are able to do this, it is like being born again; it’s a fresh start.

I remember my conversion when I was six years old. It was in the Baptist church, we were singing hymn #187, Just As I Am. I walked down the aisle, confessed my sins—which were numerous at six years old!—and accepted Jesus into my heart so that I could be saved. And while I have grown and changed over the years I always come back to this moment in time, to this turning toward God, because it continues to inform my journey of faith.

After my conversion I started memorizing Bible verses. The first verse I ever memorized was John 3:16. Let’s have all the Baptists in the room say it with me—“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” If you’re Catholic you might be a little afraid of us right now!

Here’s the thing about this verse: It has been taken so literally and held up as the only example of conversion. And I find it sad and ironic that this has happened in a story where Jesus is clearly saying that literalism and the letter of the law isn’t what he’s looking for. Jesus didn’t come into the world to condemn us but to save us. From literalism. From being rule-bound. In saving us, Jesus isn’t looking for converts; he is looking for conversion. In fact, he demands it, especially from religious people.

The issue in thinking about conversion as it’s thought about in conservative Christianity is that conversion only happens one time. But according to Jesus, we’re missing the point. The whole point about being “born again” is that it happens again and again and again.

I’ve had many conversions throughout my life. I had a conversion to a God of mercy. I lived with a God of judgment and punishment for far too long. I am over it. I have grown weary of fear-based religion and the churches that teach it. I had a conversion to a God who doesn’t expect perfect Christians; I believe God wants people who are willing to engage the messiness of life and for me, this is a God of second chances and of grace—not judgment.

I had a conversion from being a conservative Christian to being a progressive Christian. There was a time in my life that being a conservative Christian served me well and I will always be grateful for that. But as I’ve continued in my journey of faith, I’ve needed more. I’ve needed to ask questions about God that conservative Christianity didn’t allow me to ask. I’ve needed to find a way of embracing other religious truths and wisdom while still being faithful to Jesus Christ. I’ve needed the boundaries of language about God to be broadened. I’ve needed more of a focus on social justice and compassion for the poor. I’ve needed a theology that is inclusive, that values diversity, and isn’t afraid to engage the gray. I realize that there is an ongoing conversation in the larger society between conservative and progressive Christians. It’s even going on here at Christ Covenant. I have a newsflash for you this morning: If you know that you can be gay and Christian, you’re already a progressive Christian. You did not learn that from conservative Christianity.

I had a conversion to a feminine God after living with only a masculine God for 27 years. Baptists and the protestant religions missed out on the feminine nature of God. But the Catholics got it right! I am so thankful that you held onto Mary until I could learn to reach out for her myself. If I had never been converted to a feminine God, I wouldn’t be standing before you today because in conservative, masculine only Christianity, there is no room for a woman in the pulpit. Now I have both a feminine and masculine God—and truly a God who is beyond gender.

I’ve had many conversions in my life. I hope you have too. I’m willing to have more. Am I born again? You better believe it. And again. And again. How about you? Are willing to be born again? Use this forty days and forty nights of Lent to have your own conversations with Jesus about conversion and being born again. Ask Jesus how you can get more out of life and deepen your relationship the Divine.

The Spirit of God can come upon us, blow us around, turn us around, anytime and anyplace. And once we turn around we realize that the Spirit is there waiting, with open arms and smile on Her face. And may we all say to Her, “Do that to me one more time, once is never enough.”

Copyright © 2008 by Rev. Tessie Mandeville. Permission granted for non- profit circulation with attribution of author and venue. Other rights reserved.