Blog Archives
Life: God’s Version of ‘Take Your Child to Work’ Day Week 5: Work Priorities–A sermon on Luke 14:1-14
Life: God’s Version of
‘Take Your Child to Work’ Day
Week 5: Work Priorities
Luke 14:1-14
† IHS †
May the grace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ embrace you as your priotities in life begin to reflect Jesus’ priorities!
I wanna Do it My way!
There is an old phrase that comes into play when children go to work with their dads. It is that someone grew to big for their britches
You know the attitude, when the child tells God they know exactly how to get the work done, and they don’t need the Father, or their God’s direction or oversight
I can hear the cries…
“I can do it…!!!!”
“I know what I’m doing..”
And of course the famous, “I did it my way!!!”
Yeah, I remember a couple of projects I did my way…. I am amazed my dad let me – and even more amazed he didn’t laugh over the completed work….
The biggest lessons I would learn in those moments was that there was an order to do things, a priority, and that usually included doing the hardest and most challenging thing first.
In today’s gospel, there is a couple of priorities set by Jesus, or priorities reset by Jesus.
Higher Priority – People over Practices
The first priority is seen at the home of the one of the chief pharisees.
There’s a man there in pain, and it time for fellowship after they had worshipped together, they are ignoring him. I don’t know how long he’s had edema, but I know the pain the man was enduring. His issue was caused by a poorly functioning heart, which gathers in the legs and chest to cause more tension so that blood can return to the heart. Edema is a symptom, but it makes it harder to walk, harder to do anything – and as it turns to congestive heart failure, it can result in a brain fog.
And the poor guy is all but ignored by the pharisees.
Jesus notices him, not just like, ‘there’s Joe,’ but, ‘there’s Joe, and he’s in a lot of pain!” I Compelled to do something, Jesus also realzies that he can help—and yet there are other hearts that need to be healed.
Other hearts that are struggling and under pressure, and whose answer to Jesus’s question about healing on the Sabbath, shows that they are in a fog as well. They were so focused on proving their holiness, by keeping all the rules – God and their own, that they forget about God. Their hearts were far from them, and the harder they worked to keep the rules, the more pressure they put on their heart and soul.
They had spiritual edema!
Instead, excess water being stored in their legs, they had so much that caused them to lose focus on God’s love. You see pharisees and those who were “experts in the law” knew more, and tried to live life perfectly, and they added all these rules that would prevent them from accidently breaking any commandment. If you’ve ever seen the Jewish people who were all black, have the really cool hats and the men have long rair with ringlets – the are Hassidic, the modern Pharisees who say they keep the law. They would even tithe their spice rack, Jesus said “23 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. Matthew 23:23 (NLT2) Can you imagine yelling at your ids or your parents for interrupting your count of garlic salt and dividing one in 10 grains to give to the church kitchen?
A lot of those rules were attempts to keep safe the Lord’s name, and to keep holy the Sabbath.
When they wer faced with a decision not covered by their rules, scripture says, “they could not answer…”
Jesus’ didn’t just heal the man with physical edema. He would die to heal them of their spiritual edema to do, as he promised through Ezekiel. “26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.” Ezekiel 36:26-27 (NLT2)
That is the promise of baptism, what starts as God claims us as His own and cleanse us of all sin…
That new heart gets rid of all the edema, and more importantly it heals the cause of it. In the process, we see others with spiritual edema – and we want to see them find the cure we do… and that is more a priority…than our man-made rules and routines.
Prioritizing People
Even as we look at how Jesus teaches us to prioritize people’s hearts and souls over the the systems and structures we have put in place, He also teaches us how to prioritize people.
It starts by talking about our own place in the world, and not assuming we get the best position—even though God promises we are His prized possession, but like Jesus leaving heaven, embracing the lower position isn’t a big deal.
Nor is making sure you have done proper networking, making sure you get all the “best” people over for dinner. Jesus said it this way,
12 Then he turned to his host. “When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,” he said, “don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward. 13 Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.
The cool thing is you, when you do such things, are doing what Jesus did. Giving up, even sacrificing the easy life, ot make sure those with edema, or spiritual edema, are taken care of, even it is takes a little more effort. Some of those are physically disabled, but look out as much for those who are spiritually disabled, cripped by past experiences, blinded to the truth.
In need of a healer, in need of Jesus.
For once we in need of His healing… and most of us still are. But He is here, caring for us. As we go to work, as we do things the Father’s way, we find ourselves caring for them, as they, like we, are to be His work of art, created anew in Christ Jesus. AMEN.
Unnecessary Suffering….how do we cope?
God, who am I?
Devotional Thought fo the Day:
14 Let us, then, hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we have a great High Priest who has gone into the very presence of God—Jesus, the Son of God. 15 Our High Priest is not one who cannot feel sympathy for our weaknesses. On the contrary, we have a High Priest who was tempted in every way that we are, but did not sin. 16 Let us have confidence, then, and approach God’s throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it. Hebrews 4:14-16 (TEV)
Do not limit your patience to such or such kind of injuries and afflictions, but extend it to all such as it shall please God to send you. Some are unwilling to suffer any tribulations, but such as are honourable; for example, to be wounded in battle, to be a prisoner of war, to be persecuted for religion, or to be impoverished by some lawsuit determined in their favour. Now, these people do not love the tribulation, but the honour which accompanies it; whereas, he that is truly patient, suffers tribulations indifferently, whether accompanied by ignominy or honour.
As I write this, in the background is Anne Hathaway’s version of “I dreamed a dream” from the movie version of Les Mis. I can’t help but think of the character, and the background found in the novel. ALothough in the beginning a victim of her own sin, others make her misery and despair far more oppressive.
Some, like Val Jean, do so without thought. Others, like the Innkeeper and his wife, or the supervisor in the shop, do so with evil and malice.
Either way, the suffering is real, the oppression stifling, the pain incapacitating.
As I read St. Francis De Sales words this morning, it, this idea of unnecessary suffering started dominating my thoughts. How do we deal with the suffering we don’t deserve, the pains that are caused by others, or whose biological cause cannot be blamed on anyone.
Things like my genetic heart issues, my dear friend’s ongoing battle with cancer, the unknown victims of terrorism and their families, those who suffer from PTSD, or some other mental illness and those who suffer with them.
This is different than the cyber-crusader who looks and desires and rejoices in his being “persecuted for rightness ( not righteousness) sake.” Those people love the honor they receive from being a victim, and they deserve the persecution and the problems.
But what about the innocent who suffer? Or those who suffering is so compounded by others neglect or deliberate harm?
As one, I’ve learned the hard way, through many sleepless nights, and times of tears that I cannot justify the suffering, I cannot find the “why” that I so desperately want to know. I can strike out in anger, I can slip into the deepest of depression, I can, and have at times, hoped the suffering would simply end.
Those thoughts don’t diminish the suffering, if anything, it gives the suffering more power over me, increasing the anxiety. Nor am I strong enough, on my own, to avoid those feelings.
I need to be patient, with these things I cannot explain, with the pain I can’t bear on my own. I need to have the patience De Sales calls for, I need the assurance of God’s empathy and benevolence of a God who invites me into HIS presence. I need to have the confidence to look to HIM, to understand how His innocent suffering had a purpose, and that somehow God will use mine for good.
It is not an easy task, coming to this conclusion, gaining this confidence. It is one I often fail to achieve, as this day or that is spent letting the darkness enclose me. Devotion is the answer, not devotions (remember – my strength had already failed), but devotion. Considering Christ’s devotion to me, and as I do, growing to adore Him.
There is the answer. Considering the depth of Christ’s devotion, there I find the hope that enable the patience I need, the strength to endure, the ability to take my mind off of my problems. Being encouraged by others, who endure, and hear my words and find the same strength to endure. That helps me realize the depth of Christ’s empathy. As odd as it sounds, I can embrace the suffering, knowing His suffering that He embraced. For He embraced it for a simple reason. He loved you andI.
Will I need the encouragement of others, pointing me back to the cross? Yes! Will I still struggle at times? After 45 years of dealing with this, the answers is, yes. But I know I will come out of the depths, sustained by Jesus, who volunteered to suffer so that I would know His empathy, HIs love, and ultimately, His peace.
This is my goal for today, to walk confidently into His presence, to accept His invitation to walk with Him.
And to pray you will boldly, confidently walk with our God as well.
Godspeed!
dt
Francis de Sales, Saint. An Introduction to the Devout Life. Dublin: M. H. Gill and Son, 1885. Print.
Don’t Confuse me with an Optimist…
Devotional Thought of the Day….
I long ago came up with, what is my theory of life.
An optimist looks at a 20 oz beverage container holding 10 oz of fluid and calls it half full. A pessimist looks at the same container and calls it half empty. I walk over drain the mug of beer, ticking off the optimist and the pessimist simultaneously. It was a good beer, the container served its purpose, and I caused opposing sides of an argument to be united. (against me – but that is cool) That’s a very good day! (1)
For some reason, I am occasionally mistaken for an optimist. I’m not sure why. I am certainly not a pessimist either, and I don’t fit on a line somewhere in between.
Don’t get me wrong – there are times I am sure everything is going to collapse around me, that the world is going to implode – and the proof of the possibility of that is that… well – I am here, therefore it could happen. At the same time – I a pretty sure that if it does, it will be a truly glorious thing to witness, mind-blowing even, and that I will find myself thoroughly enjoying the spectacle!
This weirdness in me is developed in part – by a long list of tragedies and traumas I have seen in life, either experiencing them myself ( for example my heart issues and marfans syndrome, my dropping out of college, my motorcycle accident, heck I could fill a blog) or by those I’ve walked beside, as they have seen God cause them to persevere and endure in peace …even unto death.
I’ve seen to much to be a carefree, naive, optimist who thinks everything is coming up roses. I have seen God’s action in those times nearly as often (sometimes I admit I can’t see them) to be a “the sky is falling” pessimist. Sure I will rant and rave at times, or celebrate a bit too early in other times. But overall, I am neither, or both, finding the joy in suffering, and the soberness in joy.
Maybe it is that my optimism is found, in that same place as faith, as trusting in God to fulfill specially what He has promised.
I like how St Josemaria put it,
“659 Christian optimism is not a sugary optimism; nor is it a mere human confidence that everything will turn out all right. It is an optimism that sinks its roots in an awareness of our freedom, and in the sure knowledge of the power of grace. It is an optimism which leads us to make demands on ourselves, to struggle to respond at every moment to God’s calls.” (2)
Call it “baptismal” optimism – the attitude we have in knowing that which God has given and done to us, when He claimed us as His people, when He cleansed our lives, and bound and sealed us with the gift of the Holy Spirit, the never-ending presence of God in our lives. Knowing that because of the grace poured out there, our lives are renewed, revitalized! That sin and shame and guilt and fearing death and Satan no longer have a hold on us, that we enter God’s presence and abide there confidently in peace.
There – instead of naively assuming that everything will work out right, or that everything is sure to fail, we can engage the attitude Paul describes as ours..
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:6-9 (NLT)
Live in your baptismal grace my friends… and rejoice… not just because all things will work out for good for those that love God, but that they will, because you abide in Christ..
(1) DT Parker – ~1988
(2) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 2424-2428). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
