Sermons Like Pea Soup

I am in Switzerland at the moment. I have heard that sermons here are, as one churchman put it, "like eating pea soup with a fork". It seems very obvious to me that people here are not on the edge of desperation, as they so often are in Africa. This has a cultural influence on sermons -- among other influences, that is. OBSERVATION: While I was contemplating this, I received a message from Cape Town, "Reverend, the Lord don't put obstacles in our way that we can't overcome. So I believe HE will make a way, on His time, not mine. But I keep my head high, no matter the circumstances. That's what keeps me motivated." This is someone whose family is on the edge of penury, his wife in ill health, after his boss committed suicide.