For Sunday, August 4th

Hello Friends,

Welcome back to Prepared Hearts, the Wacousta Community UMC online Bible study. The Revised Common Lectionary texts for this week include: Hosea 11:1-11, Psalm 107:1-9, 43 or Psalm 49:1-12, Colossians 3:1-11, and Luke 12:13-21. What is the Revised Common Lectionary? Find out here.

This week I’ll be preaching from Luke. The NRSV translation is below, followed by some starter thoughts.

Luke 12:13-21

Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” Then he told them a parable: “The land of a rich man produced abundantly. And he thought to himself, ‘What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’ Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.”

STARTER THOUGHTS

The text begins with a dispute over family inheritance, something that continues to divide families today. The man comes to Jesus for arbitration, but Jesus instead gives a lesson about how to treat material wealth. How do you think the brother with the inheritance dispute responded to Jesus’ words?

My first reflections on this text are very personal. I ask myself: what place do material possessions hold in my heart and mind? What full barns do I have that I’m holding on to, reluctant to share? In what ways am I similar to the rich man from this story? And then, perhaps most importantly: what do I need to change about my attitude or actions?

I am continually amazed at how the teachings of Jesus from two thousand years ago remain so relevant to our daily lives today. Not only the stories he used, but the admonitions he gave, such as “be on guard against all kinds of greed,” are words we need to hear as much as his first disciples. How do you define “greed?” Where do you see manifestations of it in the world? In our community? In your own life?

This scripture inevitably triggers thoughts and discussion about saving and stewardship. Saving some of the harvest for the next year’s planting was essential, just as savings accounts and pension plans are acts of good stewardship. However, the question becomes: how much saving is just greedy? This parable makes it seem very simple. When the rich man’s barns were full and his response was to build bigger barns, he clearly crossed a line. Yet, sometimes that line in our own lives isn’t as easy to see. How are we to judge where the line is between good stewardship and greed when it comes to our personal finances? How does this apply to how we approach our church’s finances?

This text invites us to remember our call to both social and personal holiness. What social policies or laws allow for the building of bigger and bigger barns by individuals and/or corporations? How do you think God would have us respond to the gross inequality between in the rich and poor in our country and around the globe?

Finally, what word of encouragement or challenge does this teaching offer to persons living in or near poverty? Many individuals and families are living paycheck to paycheck and have no barns at all. Does this scripture apply beyond material possessions? How so?

As always, I look forward to hearing your thoughts and reflections.

Feel free to email me directly or post a comment here.

Peace,

Pastor Amee

For Sunday, July 28th

Hello Friends,

Welcome back to Prepared Hearts, the Wacousta Community UMC online Bible study. Lectionary texts for this week include: Hosea 1:2-10, Psalm 85, Colossians 2:6-15 (16-19), and Luke 11:1-13. I’ll be preaching from Luke. The NRSV translation is below, followed by some starter thoughts.

Luke 11:1-13

He was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of trial.”

And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

“So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

STARTER THOUGHTS

There’s a lot going on in this short passage. First, Jesus answers his disciples’ question about how to pray and then follows it up with a story about persistence. Finally, he reiterates the nature of our relationship with God as one like that of a child and parent.

In the middle of it all, we have a very popular line of scripture: “For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” It’s really pretty text, so it often gets plucked out and put on posters, bookmarks, etc. However, when it stands alone, it makes God sound less like our sovereign Creator and more like our own personal Santa Claus, who if we ask long enough, will give us what we want. How do we move beyond a “Santa Claus” understanding of God? What’s the real purpose of prayer after all?

When I read this scripture, the first question that comes to my mind is: what about those times when we are persistent in prayer and knock and knock and nothing seems to happen? How do we make sense of receiving the exact opposite of what we have asked for?

This teaching asks us to be explorers in faith: search, ask, knock. Jesus challenges us not to have the answers, but to seek them out from the Lord. This runs counter to what we are experiencing now in what’s often called the “information age.” We watch television shows that explain how everything from copper piping to bubble gum gets made. If we have a question, Google is right there to give us an abundance of answers. We’ve grown accustomed to getting answers, and I don’t know about you, but I like answers. In the midst of a culture of answers, how can we cultivate a spirit that is at peace with the process of searching and asking? Does the church convey an attitude of exploration or do we present ourselves as if we already have all the answers?

Jesus shares a prayer in this text that later gets expanded upon and becomes part of the church’s common language as the Lord’s Prayer. When you pray, “Your Kingdom come,” what is it that you imagine? If things were on earth as they are in heaven, what would be different? What would be the same?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and reflections!

For Sunday, July 21st, 2013

Hello Friends,

Welcome to Prepared Hearts, the Wacousta Community UMC online Bible study. Lectionary texts for this week include: Amos 8:1-12, Psalm 52, Colossians 1:15-28 & Luke 10:38-42. I’ll be preaching from Luke this coming Sunday. 

The NRSV translation is below, followed by some starter thoughts to get you thinking and praying about this lesson in preparation for next week's worship. 

Luke 10:38-42

38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39 She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. 40 But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; 42 there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”

Starter thoughts:

This portion of Luke’s gospel seems perfectly timed for this season of the year. Sometimes it feels like summers just keep getting busier and shorter. Between vacations, camps, sports, gardening, farmers markets, home improvement projects, and family reunions, summer “break” seems like anything but. I’m guessing that no matter what season it is, the description of “worried and distracted by many things” might ring true for more than a few of us. How do you find time to sit at the Lord’s feet? When and where do you feel most at ease and in the company of the Lord?

When it comes to Mary and Martha, I have a tendency to get more than a little defensive about the virtue of Mary’s study over the results of Martha’s work ethic. Those of you who have entertained guests know that hospitality takes effort. With Mary out of the picture, Martha is stuck trying to feed and care for a really large gathering all by herself, and she has few resources to work with. When is the last time any of us entertained 13+ guests with almost no money and little forewarning? Given that it would have been (unfortunately) inconceivable for the men to help in the preparation of the home, procurement of water, making of food, etc….my question is: what the heck is Mary thinking!? Doesn’t she see her sister freaking out? Why does Martha have to ask for Jesus to intervene? And then why does he seem to value Mary’s education over Martha’s desire to care for her guests?

Undoubtedly, one of the things that Martha is “distracted” by is Mary’s brazen behavior. It was unheard of for women to sit among men as Mary did. Her actions would have been seen as scandalous, and Martha is likely afraid of what the neighbors might think. It was absolutely radical that Jesus allowed Mary to be part of this inner circle of disciples, but it was also highly taboo and could have jeopardized Mary’s chances for marriage, and with it, her future economic security. These were not easy times to be a woman. Mary is choosing to sit at Jesus’ feet and learn from his teachings, even though the costs for her could be quite high. Where do you think this courage came from within Mary? Was Jesus not concerned for how his relationship with Mary might be misconstrued? What do you think Martha was most afraid of when it came to her sister?

Finally, Jesus tells Martha: there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her. There are a lot of interpretations of this, but how do you understand this statement?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and reflections. Please feel free to post a message to this blog or contact me through Facebook or email. 

Peace,

Pastor Amee