Martin Luther King Week: Sermon #3

Tim Crawley, Martin Luther King, Jr. statue
over the west entrance of Westminster Abbey,
London, England, United Kingdom

In his poem "Harlem", the great Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes once wrote:

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up

like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore—

And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?

Or crust and sugar over—

like a syrupy sweet? 

 

Maybe it just sags

like a heavy load.

 

Or does it explode?

Martin Luther King, Jr. also wondered about dreams deferred, unrealized and unfulfilled. I am not sure if he was inspired by the text of Hughes' poem, however, I can confirm that he indeed was inspired by the text of Hebrew prose. Specifically Dr. King was stirred by the story of King Solomon's retelling of his father's (King David) dream to build a temple for God. Alas this was a dream that would remain unfulfilled for David. God did not grant him the opportunity. It was destined for his son Solomon to accomplish. Yet God did honor the intention of David's heart. That is the setting for Dr. King's sermon "Unfulfilled Dreams" that delves into our individual and corporate aspirations for good and great things... aspirations that never achieve manifestation. Yet God honors our frustrated yet earnest intentions. This is one of Dr. King's greatest expressions of the Scripture's grasp of Mankind's spiritual frustration. Enjoy!   

Unfulfilled Dreams from Sweet Speeches on Vimeo.