1 Thessalonians 2:1-8
Sharing is timeless. It reveals itself in many forms and through various expressions. An elderly couple walked into a restaurant and ordered a hamburger and a soda. The waiter noticed the elderly gentleman cut the hamburger in half and slide one portion over to his wife.
Taking pity, thinking the poor couple couldn't afford much to eat, the waiter offered to bring another burger to the table.
"No, no," said the husband. "We share."
Later, the waiter approached them again, saying he would be more than happy to give them another hamburger. But the response was the same.
"No, it's all right. We share."
When the waiter noticed, however, that the wife was not eating, he could restrain himself no longer. Approaching them, he asked the husband, "Why isn't your wife eating?"
"Oh, she's just waiting for the teeth."
How do you share yourself with others? Perhaps sharing your teeth is a bit extreme, so what are some other ways we share?
Paul writes in our text this morning that “our coming to you was not in vain”(1 Thess. 2:1). Paul shares his motivation and purpose. It reveals much about a steward’s approach to the life of faith. Paul is responding to reports about members of the church in Thessalonica who were questioning Paul’s motives as an Apostle of God. For the church Paul started years earlier was no stranger to conflict. The church in Thessalonica was born out of violent upheaval. We read in Acts 17 of the rather unhospitable welcome Paul and Silas received when they first arrived in Thessalonica. They went to the local synagogue on three Sabbath days argued with the leaders from the scriptures, “explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Messiah to suffer and to rise from the dead…” (Acts 17:3) And several who heard them were persuaded to join them. But not everyone was happy to have these outsiders in their city, so they accused Paul and Silas, before the city magistrate, that these men were “turning the world upside down”. Later on there were other free-lance teachers of religion and philosophy who sought their own interests and worked for a fee, who sought to earn a profit, expecting a pay day for sharing their knowledge and gifts. They were working for themselves with their own personal agenda and purpose. Paul, in contrast, worked a side job in order to not be a financial burden in those early years. They shared the Gospel and their whole selves with these new believers of Jesus. Paul outlines his and his companions’ deeper objective for engaging the Thessalonian church. Despite the great opposition they faced, Paul acknowledges that through much suffering he mustered the courage to speak the gospel to the church. He does so because as he writes, “you have become very dear to us”. Paul’s desire is not only to share the Gospel with those he loves, but also to share the lives of Paul’s fellow workers with the people.
In other words, Paul and his co-workers came with purpose in order to share the life-giving gospel of Christ.
Our society today trains us to specialize in trivial pursuits. Whether it involves wasting time watching TV with no real purpose, surfing through the newsfeed on social media sites, playing video games or reading trifling, indulgent literature, our culture dedicates itself to spending time engrossed in vain interests, interests that simply have no real value in the long term. In contrast with past generations, most of us don’t chase after our next meal or work constantly to merely survive. And perhaps we have made an idol of our idle time.[1] An idle mind is the devil’s playground.
The late George Burns once said, “When you stop sharing yourself and offering something to the rest of the world, it's time to turn out the lights.”
How often do we find ourselves simply staring at our phones as if we are waiting for it to ring or hope to discover something amazing going on in the world or hearing of some gossip that’s traveling through cyberspace. How often do we find ourselves flipping through the hundreds of TV channels available today and conclude there is nothing on worth watching. How often do we find ourselves going through one web page after another for hours at a time? How often do we find ourselves majoring in minor things?
To be effective stewards of God, we must discern the true value of time, the value of money, the value of gifts and share them. Effective stewards recognize that God creates all things for a purpose, for a reason, and that our life’s end is to honor God with our time, talent and treasure. And to that end, we come to know, perhaps in a new way, we are to fulfill God’s purpose by sharing ourselves with others; by sharing and expecting nothing in return; by sharing ourselves without reservation. And in doing so, we share the gospel.
Bobby was a special-education boy. He was just bright enough to remain in a regular classroom but was still noticeably different. He was the constant butt of jokes by his classmates, but he never seemed to mind. Every day, as the neighborhood kids walked home from school, Bobby’s mother would look out the window to see them all laughing and joking together—all except Bobby. He was always walking behind the others, all alone. It was obvious that the other children felt uncomfortable around Bobby and shunned him.
One day Bobby burst into the kitchen after school. “Mom, guess what?” he said. “Valentine’s Day is two weeks away, and our teacher said we could make valentines and give them to the other kids in our class!”
His mother’s heart sank as she pictured yet another opportunity for Bobby to be excluded. “Mom,” Bobby continued, “I’m going to make a valentine for every person in my class!”
“That’s very nice, Bobby,” his mother answered, fighting back the tears.
Over the next two weeks, Bobby worked every afternoon on those valentines. They were truly labors of love. When the big day finally came, he was so excited about taking his valentines to school that he couldn’t eat breakfast. But he was also a little worried.
“I hope I didn’t forget anybody,” he said as he dashed off to school.
Bobby’s mother made a fresh batch of his favorite cookies and prepared herself to comfort her son when he returned home brokenhearted from the valentine exchange. She knew how disappointed he would be with the response he received from the other children.
That afternoon she saw the same cluster of neighborhood kids walking home together. A half block behind them, all alone, was Bobby. Bobby’s mother turned away and placed a plate of cookies on the table; expecting the worst.
Much to her surprise, Bobby came through the door with a huge smile on his face. “What is it, Bobby?” she asked. “How did it go?”
With a shout of pure joy, Bobby said, “Guess what, Mom! I didn’t forget a single kid!”
Bobby was so focused on sharing that he didn’t consider the response he would get. He was so concerned about others that he was blind to the fact that he was being slighted.
Sometimes when we share, our motive is to make people think we’re wonderful or to prompt others to share something in return.
The poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow writes, “Share what you have: To someone, it may be better than you dare to think.” Paul and Silas shared their whole selves to kickstart the church in Thessalonica, amid the risks that they faced, not afraid to fail, not looking for a return on their investment, knowing it was all in God’s hands.
May we be so focused on sharing our time, talent and treasure that we don’t consider or think about what we’ll get in return. As you consider your stewardship commitment of your financial resources for 2015, remember your purpose for being here on this earth is to share your whole self with others; “to give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to notice the wounds, to toil and not seek for rest, to labor and not to seek reward, except to know we are doing God’s will.”[2]. Amen.
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
I'm Ready to Play!
Matthew 22:1-14
I thoroughly enjoy watching college football. I love the excitement, the drama, the competition, and the school spirit. Back in the day when Texas played Texas A&M the Friday after Thanksgiving, I found the school spirit for both teams extraordinary, especially when I discovered why the students of Texas A&M stand the whole way through the game. Back in 1922, the Aggies were having a great season. They were on their way to becoming champions of the Southwest Conference. In January, they went to Dallas for the Dixie Classic. A basketball player named E. King Gill went along to scout the game from the stands.
But the team was hit hard with injuries. By the end of the first half, the coach wasn't sure that he would have 11 healthy players to put on the field. He looked up in the stands and waved for E. King Gill to come down to the field.
There were no locker rooms, so the coach brought the guy down to the field and put a jersey on him right there. E. King Gill stood there throughout the second half as the 12th man, so that if they didn't have 11 men to put on the field, he would be ready to play. He stood there, the whole second half, saying, "Coach, if you need me, I'm ready to play." And ever since, the students at Texas A&M have stood the whole way through the game. It's their way of saying, "Coach, if you need me, I'm ready to play."
And I wonder if, during these days, some of us won't feel the Spirit of God moving within us so that we say, "Lord, if you need me, I'm ready to play."
The kingdom of God is for everyone who is prepared and ready to play. Everyone gets an invitation. And although the invitation to God’s kingdom is open to all, it rests upon the invited to respond appropriately; to be prepared and ready to play. In the parable, the king plans to throw a wedding feast for his son. Wedding feasts are a major celebration in the ancient times of Jesus. Wedding feasts are a big deal. Nobody missed a good wedding feast. And if it’s the king, you know it’s going to be awesome. The king sends his slaves to go and invite guests to the wedding. But they refuse to attend. They don’t want to come. Can you imagine inviting people you know well, who you are close with, to a wedding you are hosting and nobody wants to come? They refused to go. They just flat out blew him off. The only thing they did do was kill the king’s messengers.
After eradicating these murderers from the face of the earth, the king sends other slaves to invite more people. They are to invite everyone they meet, good and bad alike. Invite everyone: the outcasts, the riff-raff, the blind and the lame, tax collectors and prostitutes; invite everyone, regardless of race, regardless of class, regardless of gender, regardless of sexual orientation, regardless of their citizenship. Invite the poor, the abused, the misused, the lonely: all are welcome. And they accept!
Now the joint is jumpin’! The wedding party is in full swing. People are dancing, eating great food and good drink, enjoying the night of their lives. It’s the social event of the year. Everyone is having a great time. Everything is awesome!
But not everyone responds appropriately. There are expectations of every guest. Although the invitation to God’s realm is open to all, it nevertheless rests upon the invited guests to be prepared and ready for whatever. Disciples who aspire to faithful stewardship recognize that when they respond to God’s invitation, they do so with a proper attitude, a proper demeanor and are properly prepared. When we arrive at God’s banquet, we approach as those ready to share in the festivities, prepared to offer our lives to serve those for whom Christ died. We are given a robe of integrity from Christ.[1] With that robe, we come prepared and ready to play.
How can we be ready to offer our lives to serve those for whom Christ suffered and died?
Historically the church in the Western world has worked hard to be prepared. It has utilized and embraced a model of church growth designed to attract people to attend congregational events, and ultimately invites them to join a local congregation, by providing services to the individual. A local church will provide excellent child-care, professionally played music, state of the art facilities and ministries specially tailored to individual desires. If you build it, they will come.
I believe this has resulted in a consumerist church where individual Christians choose their congregational affiliation based on personal preferences and choices. Increasingly, the caste, the class and the taste -- the “attractional” value -- will be what determines the choice of one's church more than anything else.
The main task of the church consists in going out and getting the salt out of the saltshaker and into every corner of society. But when the salt continues to seek out larger and larger saltshakers within which to seclude themselves from the world, the mission of God suffers. God's mission for the church requires each and every Christian to take personal responsibility for seeing that God's kingdom comes to the little corner of the earth that they inhabit. We are called to take the Gospel message out into the world, not sit back and wait for everyone to show up at our door. How do we get ready for this mission work? How do we prepare ourselves to be the messengers ready to live out and share the Gospel?
We prepare ourselves by allowing God to change us through the Holy Spirit. God loves us for who we are, but not enough to let us stay that way. But we don’t want to hear that. Deep down we don’t want to change. We want to hear that everyone is all right exactly as they are; that God loves us as we are and doesn’t want us to change. People often say this when they want to justify certain habits and/or behaviors, but that dog won’t hunt! Think about it: when the blind and the lame came to Jesus, he didn’t say, “You’re all right as you are”. He healed them. When the prostitutes and tax collectors came to Jesus, he didn’t say, “You’re all right as you are”. He forgave them. His love reached them where they were, but his love refused to let them stay as they were. Love wants the best for the beloved. Do we believe that God wants everyone to stay exactly as they are? God loves serial killers and criminals; God loves ruthless and arrogant businessmen; God loves manipulative parents who damage their children’s emotions for life. The point of God’s love is that he wants them to change. He hates what they are doing and how it affects everyone else and themselves, too.
In the end, if God is good, he cannot allow sinful behavior, and an unrepentant person, if they don’t change, to remain forever in the party he’s throwing for his son.[2] We must be willing to change according to the leading of the Holy Spirit to become all who God has called us to be, not who we think we are to be. We must be willing to embrace the new things God is doing in the life of our church. As we celebrate and remember 75 years of ministry at the crossroads of Main and Lawrence Streets, we are amazed at the life and ministry that has taken shape within these walls; the legacy of this grand facility to be used to minister to the whole community of God in Jesus Christ.
It’s not enough to rest on our laurels and accomplishments always living for some moment five years ago, ten years ago, fifty years ago. It is not enough to want the safe, soft side of discipleship and shy away from the more difficult work of outreach and social justice. It is not enough to want blessings from God, but bawk when it is time to share in the work of ministry. It is not enough to share in a free dinner at the church, and be unwilling to serve a meal in a soup kitchen or hand out groceries at Helping Hands. And if we refuse to roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty, if we refuse to do the more difficult work of ministry, and not be prepared for the wedding feast, the kingdom of God, then we are saying we don’t want to stay at the party; that we do not want anything to do with God, Jesus, the church, any of it. We will not be able to say, “Lord, if you need me, I’m ready to play.”
Billy Joel sings that “the good old days weren’t always good and tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.” And tomorrow is scary. Tomorrow is unclear. Tomorrow is uncertain. But tomorrow is…exciting, electrifying, stimulating, mind-blowing, thrilling. What a ride it will be!
I thoroughly enjoy watching college football. I love the excitement, the drama, the competition, and the school spirit. Back in the day when Texas played Texas A&M the Friday after Thanksgiving, I found the school spirit for both teams extraordinary, especially when I discovered why the students of Texas A&M stand the whole way through the game. Back in 1922, the Aggies were having a great season. They were on their way to becoming champions of the Southwest Conference. In January, they went to Dallas for the Dixie Classic. A basketball player named E. King Gill went along to scout the game from the stands.
But the team was hit hard with injuries. By the end of the first half, the coach wasn't sure that he would have 11 healthy players to put on the field. He looked up in the stands and waved for E. King Gill to come down to the field.
There were no locker rooms, so the coach brought the guy down to the field and put a jersey on him right there. E. King Gill stood there throughout the second half as the 12th man, so that if they didn't have 11 men to put on the field, he would be ready to play. He stood there, the whole second half, saying, "Coach, if you need me, I'm ready to play." And ever since, the students at Texas A&M have stood the whole way through the game. It's their way of saying, "Coach, if you need me, I'm ready to play."
And I wonder if, during these days, some of us won't feel the Spirit of God moving within us so that we say, "Lord, if you need me, I'm ready to play."
The kingdom of God is for everyone who is prepared and ready to play. Everyone gets an invitation. And although the invitation to God’s kingdom is open to all, it rests upon the invited to respond appropriately; to be prepared and ready to play. In the parable, the king plans to throw a wedding feast for his son. Wedding feasts are a major celebration in the ancient times of Jesus. Wedding feasts are a big deal. Nobody missed a good wedding feast. And if it’s the king, you know it’s going to be awesome. The king sends his slaves to go and invite guests to the wedding. But they refuse to attend. They don’t want to come. Can you imagine inviting people you know well, who you are close with, to a wedding you are hosting and nobody wants to come? They refused to go. They just flat out blew him off. The only thing they did do was kill the king’s messengers.
After eradicating these murderers from the face of the earth, the king sends other slaves to invite more people. They are to invite everyone they meet, good and bad alike. Invite everyone: the outcasts, the riff-raff, the blind and the lame, tax collectors and prostitutes; invite everyone, regardless of race, regardless of class, regardless of gender, regardless of sexual orientation, regardless of their citizenship. Invite the poor, the abused, the misused, the lonely: all are welcome. And they accept!
Now the joint is jumpin’! The wedding party is in full swing. People are dancing, eating great food and good drink, enjoying the night of their lives. It’s the social event of the year. Everyone is having a great time. Everything is awesome!
But not everyone responds appropriately. There are expectations of every guest. Although the invitation to God’s realm is open to all, it nevertheless rests upon the invited guests to be prepared and ready for whatever. Disciples who aspire to faithful stewardship recognize that when they respond to God’s invitation, they do so with a proper attitude, a proper demeanor and are properly prepared. When we arrive at God’s banquet, we approach as those ready to share in the festivities, prepared to offer our lives to serve those for whom Christ died. We are given a robe of integrity from Christ.[1] With that robe, we come prepared and ready to play.
How can we be ready to offer our lives to serve those for whom Christ suffered and died?
Historically the church in the Western world has worked hard to be prepared. It has utilized and embraced a model of church growth designed to attract people to attend congregational events, and ultimately invites them to join a local congregation, by providing services to the individual. A local church will provide excellent child-care, professionally played music, state of the art facilities and ministries specially tailored to individual desires. If you build it, they will come.
I believe this has resulted in a consumerist church where individual Christians choose their congregational affiliation based on personal preferences and choices. Increasingly, the caste, the class and the taste -- the “attractional” value -- will be what determines the choice of one's church more than anything else.
The main task of the church consists in going out and getting the salt out of the saltshaker and into every corner of society. But when the salt continues to seek out larger and larger saltshakers within which to seclude themselves from the world, the mission of God suffers. God's mission for the church requires each and every Christian to take personal responsibility for seeing that God's kingdom comes to the little corner of the earth that they inhabit. We are called to take the Gospel message out into the world, not sit back and wait for everyone to show up at our door. How do we get ready for this mission work? How do we prepare ourselves to be the messengers ready to live out and share the Gospel?
We prepare ourselves by allowing God to change us through the Holy Spirit. God loves us for who we are, but not enough to let us stay that way. But we don’t want to hear that. Deep down we don’t want to change. We want to hear that everyone is all right exactly as they are; that God loves us as we are and doesn’t want us to change. People often say this when they want to justify certain habits and/or behaviors, but that dog won’t hunt! Think about it: when the blind and the lame came to Jesus, he didn’t say, “You’re all right as you are”. He healed them. When the prostitutes and tax collectors came to Jesus, he didn’t say, “You’re all right as you are”. He forgave them. His love reached them where they were, but his love refused to let them stay as they were. Love wants the best for the beloved. Do we believe that God wants everyone to stay exactly as they are? God loves serial killers and criminals; God loves ruthless and arrogant businessmen; God loves manipulative parents who damage their children’s emotions for life. The point of God’s love is that he wants them to change. He hates what they are doing and how it affects everyone else and themselves, too.
In the end, if God is good, he cannot allow sinful behavior, and an unrepentant person, if they don’t change, to remain forever in the party he’s throwing for his son.[2] We must be willing to change according to the leading of the Holy Spirit to become all who God has called us to be, not who we think we are to be. We must be willing to embrace the new things God is doing in the life of our church. As we celebrate and remember 75 years of ministry at the crossroads of Main and Lawrence Streets, we are amazed at the life and ministry that has taken shape within these walls; the legacy of this grand facility to be used to minister to the whole community of God in Jesus Christ.
It’s not enough to rest on our laurels and accomplishments always living for some moment five years ago, ten years ago, fifty years ago. It is not enough to want the safe, soft side of discipleship and shy away from the more difficult work of outreach and social justice. It is not enough to want blessings from God, but bawk when it is time to share in the work of ministry. It is not enough to share in a free dinner at the church, and be unwilling to serve a meal in a soup kitchen or hand out groceries at Helping Hands. And if we refuse to roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty, if we refuse to do the more difficult work of ministry, and not be prepared for the wedding feast, the kingdom of God, then we are saying we don’t want to stay at the party; that we do not want anything to do with God, Jesus, the church, any of it. We will not be able to say, “Lord, if you need me, I’m ready to play.”
Billy Joel sings that “the good old days weren’t always good and tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.” And tomorrow is scary. Tomorrow is unclear. Tomorrow is uncertain. But tomorrow is…exciting, electrifying, stimulating, mind-blowing, thrilling. What a ride it will be!
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
How to be Content in a Dissatisfied World
Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20
How do you find contentment in a dissatisfied world? How do we find satisfaction in a world that is never satisfied with what it has; a world that is never pleased with what it has accomplished, always complaining about the present, that the present isn’t good enough, always looking for the next big thing to come down the road. How do you find contentment amid such dissatisfaction and unhappiness?
There are dissatisfied people everywhere we go. I recently read a poem by Jason Lehman entitled, “Present Tense”. He writes:
“It was spring. But it was summer I wanted, the warm days, and the great outdoors.
It was summer. But it was Fall I wanted, the colorful leaves, and the cool, dry air.
It was fall. But it was winter I wanted, the beautiful snow, and the joy of the holiday season.
It was winter. But it was spring I wanted, the warmth, and the blossoming of nature.
I was a child. But it was adulthood I wanted, the freedom, and the respect.
I was twenty. But it was thirty I wanted, to be mature, and sophisticated.
I was middle-aged. But it was twenty I wanted, the youth, and the free spirit.
I was retired. But it was middle-age I wanted, the presence of mind without limitations.
My life was over. But I never got what I wanted.”[1]
Every one of us can think of at least one person we know who is never satisfied with their situation in life. We all know someone who is a “complainer” or a “whiner” always finding the negative in someone or in someone’s life situation. We all have a tendency to complain and whine from time to time. We complain about politicans: their greed, lack of understanding, their poor decisions. We whine and complain about young people today wondering why they don’t come to church and follow the traditions we’ve always known and followed. We complain about the church and its leadership that they are not doing enough to visit and care for members of the church, failing to connect with the youth in some meaningful way, and that the demands of the pastor’s family takes the pastor away from shepherding the church members. My children whine and complain about wanting candy before dinner or to stop at Shipley’s for donuts or to buy a new toy every time we go to the store.
In her book, "Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now", author Maya Angelou has a whole chapter on the subject of "complaining." Angelou says that when "whiners" would come into her grandmother's store in Arkansas, she would go through a routine that would begin by quietly beckoning Maya to come closer. Then she would bait the "whiner" customer with "How are you doing today, Brother Thomas/Sister Harriet?" As the complaining gushed forth, she would nod or make eye contact with Maya to make sure she heard what was being said. As soon as the "whiner" left, her grandmother would ask Maya to stand in front of her. "And then she would say the same thing she had said at least a thousand times before. 'Sister, did you hear what Brother So-and-So or Sister-Much-to-Do complained about? You heard that!' And Maya would nod. Mamma would continue, 'Sister, there are people who went to sleep all over the world last night, poor and rich and white and black, but they will never wake up again. Sister, those who expected to rise did not .... And those dead folks would give anything, anything at all for just five minutes of this weather or ten minutes of that plowing that person was grumbling about. So you watch yourself about complaining, Sister. What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.'"[2] We all know someone who is never satisfied. For them contentment is an allusive dream.
I believe that one of the main reasons for such dissatisfaction in our world is because we have forgotten who we are. We have forgotten who we are as people created in the image of God.
The Ten Commandments remind us of this. It serves as a central pillar in Israel’s understanding of its relationship with God. Therefore, it is one of the most significant contributions of the Old Testament to our theology. They project a basic principle throughout Western civilization that there are certain moral principles that go beyond the present and can be traced back to the Creator. The Declaration of Independence observes that, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator…” and it serves as one of many instances reflecting the influence of the Decalogue on human life and thought.
They list the fundamental obligations of people toward God and toward one another. God comes first, but the respect owe to God cannot be separated from justice and one’s relationship to one’s neighbors. They express the divine-human relationship in verses 1-4 and 7-9, while verses 12-20 speak to human concerns.
On the divine-human commandments, we could classify all of them under the theme of “avoiding idolatry”. Remember that the Hebrews lived and practiced their faith living amongst many peoples who practiced some form of pagan worship. The Decalogue built a hedge of protection around God’s people. If the people remember who their God is, then it is likely they will remember who they are as people created in God’s image.
The remaining commandments, focusing on our relationships with one another, are a direct reflection of our relationship with God. They are the commandments that establish the basic structure of our modern day society; solidify the trust and interdependence found in our community life guiding us as we learn how to be content and satisfied with who we are and what we have.
There is a question that hangs in the air in corporate boardrooms and at cocktail parties, in IPO road shows and at the kitchen table: HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?
How much money -- to compensate you for your work? How much time -- to devote to your family? How much public glory -- to satisfy your ego? How much opportunity for private reflection -- to deepen your understanding? How much STUFF is enough? And, no matter how much stuff you have, how do you find contentment?
But while the question "How much is enough?" may not be new, the velocity, the intensity and the scale of the answers that people can choose from today ARE new. Choices -- in work and in life -- are coming at greater speed, from more directions, and with consequences that are more immediate and more dramatic than ever before.[3]
We live in a time in history in which it appears to be almost impossible to satisfy our appetite for more and more. This is one topic the Decalogue addresses in several ways. Greed can start in a person’s desire to care for themselves and their family. All too often, caring can devolve into excessive self-centeredness, even self-indulgence. What begins in a desire for security, morphs into pure greed…and greedy people rarely enjoy happiness. The greedy person can never get enough. They are never satisfied with what they own, with what belongs to them. It has become more and more difficult to maintain a sense of balance regarding our use of food, gadgets for home or office, clothing, vacations, entertainment done on our behalf as we look on. The Ten Commandments free us from these “other gods” and more: the god of goals, the god of people, the god of stuff, the god of status.
As God’s people today, the Decalogue is more than a list of rules and regulations. It is God’s gracious gift to all stewards of Jesus Christ by which we are provided with the means to respond to God’s love. They are the instrument placed in our hands by a loving and protective God, by means of which we express our acceptance of all God is and does. This is how to be content in a dissatisfied world. Amen.
How do you find contentment in a dissatisfied world? How do we find satisfaction in a world that is never satisfied with what it has; a world that is never pleased with what it has accomplished, always complaining about the present, that the present isn’t good enough, always looking for the next big thing to come down the road. How do you find contentment amid such dissatisfaction and unhappiness?
There are dissatisfied people everywhere we go. I recently read a poem by Jason Lehman entitled, “Present Tense”. He writes:
“It was spring. But it was summer I wanted, the warm days, and the great outdoors.
It was summer. But it was Fall I wanted, the colorful leaves, and the cool, dry air.
It was fall. But it was winter I wanted, the beautiful snow, and the joy of the holiday season.
It was winter. But it was spring I wanted, the warmth, and the blossoming of nature.
I was a child. But it was adulthood I wanted, the freedom, and the respect.
I was twenty. But it was thirty I wanted, to be mature, and sophisticated.
I was middle-aged. But it was twenty I wanted, the youth, and the free spirit.
I was retired. But it was middle-age I wanted, the presence of mind without limitations.
My life was over. But I never got what I wanted.”[1]
Every one of us can think of at least one person we know who is never satisfied with their situation in life. We all know someone who is a “complainer” or a “whiner” always finding the negative in someone or in someone’s life situation. We all have a tendency to complain and whine from time to time. We complain about politicans: their greed, lack of understanding, their poor decisions. We whine and complain about young people today wondering why they don’t come to church and follow the traditions we’ve always known and followed. We complain about the church and its leadership that they are not doing enough to visit and care for members of the church, failing to connect with the youth in some meaningful way, and that the demands of the pastor’s family takes the pastor away from shepherding the church members. My children whine and complain about wanting candy before dinner or to stop at Shipley’s for donuts or to buy a new toy every time we go to the store.
In her book, "Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now", author Maya Angelou has a whole chapter on the subject of "complaining." Angelou says that when "whiners" would come into her grandmother's store in Arkansas, she would go through a routine that would begin by quietly beckoning Maya to come closer. Then she would bait the "whiner" customer with "How are you doing today, Brother Thomas/Sister Harriet?" As the complaining gushed forth, she would nod or make eye contact with Maya to make sure she heard what was being said. As soon as the "whiner" left, her grandmother would ask Maya to stand in front of her. "And then she would say the same thing she had said at least a thousand times before. 'Sister, did you hear what Brother So-and-So or Sister-Much-to-Do complained about? You heard that!' And Maya would nod. Mamma would continue, 'Sister, there are people who went to sleep all over the world last night, poor and rich and white and black, but they will never wake up again. Sister, those who expected to rise did not .... And those dead folks would give anything, anything at all for just five minutes of this weather or ten minutes of that plowing that person was grumbling about. So you watch yourself about complaining, Sister. What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.'"[2] We all know someone who is never satisfied. For them contentment is an allusive dream.
I believe that one of the main reasons for such dissatisfaction in our world is because we have forgotten who we are. We have forgotten who we are as people created in the image of God.
The Ten Commandments remind us of this. It serves as a central pillar in Israel’s understanding of its relationship with God. Therefore, it is one of the most significant contributions of the Old Testament to our theology. They project a basic principle throughout Western civilization that there are certain moral principles that go beyond the present and can be traced back to the Creator. The Declaration of Independence observes that, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator…” and it serves as one of many instances reflecting the influence of the Decalogue on human life and thought.
They list the fundamental obligations of people toward God and toward one another. God comes first, but the respect owe to God cannot be separated from justice and one’s relationship to one’s neighbors. They express the divine-human relationship in verses 1-4 and 7-9, while verses 12-20 speak to human concerns.
On the divine-human commandments, we could classify all of them under the theme of “avoiding idolatry”. Remember that the Hebrews lived and practiced their faith living amongst many peoples who practiced some form of pagan worship. The Decalogue built a hedge of protection around God’s people. If the people remember who their God is, then it is likely they will remember who they are as people created in God’s image.
The remaining commandments, focusing on our relationships with one another, are a direct reflection of our relationship with God. They are the commandments that establish the basic structure of our modern day society; solidify the trust and interdependence found in our community life guiding us as we learn how to be content and satisfied with who we are and what we have.
There is a question that hangs in the air in corporate boardrooms and at cocktail parties, in IPO road shows and at the kitchen table: HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?
How much money -- to compensate you for your work? How much time -- to devote to your family? How much public glory -- to satisfy your ego? How much opportunity for private reflection -- to deepen your understanding? How much STUFF is enough? And, no matter how much stuff you have, how do you find contentment?
But while the question "How much is enough?" may not be new, the velocity, the intensity and the scale of the answers that people can choose from today ARE new. Choices -- in work and in life -- are coming at greater speed, from more directions, and with consequences that are more immediate and more dramatic than ever before.[3]
We live in a time in history in which it appears to be almost impossible to satisfy our appetite for more and more. This is one topic the Decalogue addresses in several ways. Greed can start in a person’s desire to care for themselves and their family. All too often, caring can devolve into excessive self-centeredness, even self-indulgence. What begins in a desire for security, morphs into pure greed…and greedy people rarely enjoy happiness. The greedy person can never get enough. They are never satisfied with what they own, with what belongs to them. It has become more and more difficult to maintain a sense of balance regarding our use of food, gadgets for home or office, clothing, vacations, entertainment done on our behalf as we look on. The Ten Commandments free us from these “other gods” and more: the god of goals, the god of people, the god of stuff, the god of status.
As God’s people today, the Decalogue is more than a list of rules and regulations. It is God’s gracious gift to all stewards of Jesus Christ by which we are provided with the means to respond to God’s love. They are the instrument placed in our hands by a loving and protective God, by means of which we express our acceptance of all God is and does. This is how to be content in a dissatisfied world. Amen.
[1] Jason Lehman, Present Tense. Written when he was 14.
Copyright c1989 by Jason Lehman, Woodbridge, Connecticut. Used by
permission.
[2]
Maya Angelou,
Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now
(New York: Random House, 1993), 85-87.
[3] "How
Much Is Enough?" Fast Company July-August 1999, 110.
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