Tag Archives: Abundant Life

Ending Poverty

Lent

April 2, 2022

Scripture Reading: John 12:1-8

Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?’ (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.’

Some people interpret Jesus’s statement You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me, as there is nothing, we can do about the poor. I think he was saying we need to use our time wisely. Poverty does, indeed, strike individuals and families and in Matthew 25 Jesus tells us we are to incorporate the alleviation of lack of food, appropriate clothing, and health care into our service to God.  The statement you will always have the poor with you, however, recognizes that poverty is a systemic problem that not only requires attention to meeting needs but also changing societal norms that support poverty’s existence.

About 97 million more people are living on less than $1.90 a day because of the pandemic, increasing the global poverty rate from 7.8 to 9.1 percent; 163 million more are living on less than $5.50 a day. Globally, three to four years of progress toward ending extreme poverty are estimated to have been lost*.

U.S. Billionaires Got 62 percent Richer During Pandemic. They’re Now Up $1.8 Trillion **. Global Billionaires See $5.5 Trillion Pandemic Wealth Surge ***.

There is something very wrong with this picture.

While poverty increased during the pandemic it was running amok before the pandemic. Food stamps, childcare subsidies, and Medicaid provided for low-wage families are essentially the benefits not being provided by large corporations. Middle-class taxes are largely paying for these benefits. Small businesses suffer too because they cannot compete with the mass producers. Small farms are dying all over the country. It is a complex and difficult problem to solve and in the final analysis, because we have ignored it for some time, we will all be impacted by the necessary changes. History tells us that when the rich just keep getting richer and the poor poorer the foundation of the economy is destroyed and so goes the empires. The USA is flirting with that reality now. Greed eventually eats itself.

Jesus teaches a simple story, that loving our neighbors as we love ourselves lets us have an abundant life. John 10:10b, I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” Abundance is not measured in money it is the fullness of life found in spirit, soul, and body.

Prayer: Lord, show us the way to your abundance for all. Amen.

*https://blogs.worldbank.org/developmenttalk/covid-19-leaves-legacy-rising-poverty-and-widening-inequality#:~:text=About%2097%20million%20more%20people,estimated%20to%20have%20been%20lost.

**https://ips-dc.org/u-s-billionaires-62-percent-richer-during-pandemic/

***https://ips-dc.org/global-billionaires-see-5-5-trillion-pandemic-wealth-surge/

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Ennui Leads to Destruction

Ordinary Times

February 1, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 6:9-13

And he said, ‘Go and say to this people:
“Keep listening, but do not comprehend;
keep looking, but do not understand.”
Make the mind of this people dull,
   and stop their ears,
   and shut their eyes,
so that they may not look with their eyes,
   and listen with their ears,
and comprehend with their minds,
   and turn and be healed.’
Then I said, ‘How long, O Lord?’ And he said:
‘Until cities lie waste
   without inhabitant,
and houses without people,
   and the land is utterly desolate
until the Lord sends everyone far away,
   and vast is the emptiness in the midst of the land.

Even if a tenth part remains in it,
   it will be burned again,
like a terebinth or an oak
   whose stump remains standing
   when it is felled.’

We are the cause of our own destruction. Fred Craddock, in a sermon I heard years ago, shared his thoughts about ennui—a French word incorporated into the American form of English. It means a feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction: languor or emptiness of spirit*. The essence of Craddock’s message was that God did not create us to live in such a state of being. God called us to lives of wholeness, fulness, and abundance. However, we choose to target our greatest talents and skills in all the wrong directions—greed instead of generosity, self-righteousness replacing justice. José Andrés is an outstanding chef and successful in business. Since starting his relief organization, World Central Kitchen, 10 years ago, Chef José Andrés has helped serve more than 50 million meals to people impacted by natural disasters around the globe, from hurricanes and earthquakes to wildfires and even a volcanic eruption**. We all have seen former president Jimmy Carter building Habitat for Humanity houses always with a smile on his face. Mother Teresa had the tenacity to soar to the top of politics, yet she chose to serve and advocate for the poor. None of these people wallowed in languor or emptiness of spirit. Neither should any of us.

Prayer: Lord, when we find ourselves in despair, open the windows of opportunity that show us the way to fullness of spirit.  Amen.

*https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/en%C2%B7nui

**https://www.shondaland.com/act/a35618726/chef-jose-andres-serves-up-hope-and-a-helping-hand/#:~:text=Since%20starting%20his%20relief%20organization,and%20even%20a%20volcanic%20eruption.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Abundant Life

Living in the Spirit
August 4, 2018

Scripture Reading: John 6:24-35

When they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him, ‘Rabbi, when did you come here?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.’ Then they said to him, ‘What must we do to perform the works of God?’ –John 6:25-28

What are our priorities? Going through the motions of life is not necessarily living life, certainly not the abundant life* Jesus references. What is our vision of an abundant life? Do we seek a bigger better car or house or income or winning a lottery? Is abundance being loved by God and by others; living in peace, safety, and security; being healthy with adequate food, clothing, shelter? Am I responsible for helping to assure that all God’s children can live an abundant life? What are my priorities?

The Jewish tradition looks for signs of the chosen one, the Messiah, the one who will set all things right. Jesus had performed signs in healing the sick and multiplying food. In the scripture above Jesus challenges the people who are following him to recognize that their interest is more in their signs of comfort food than in the ways of living love that Jesus primarily taught. It is like going to church only for the donuts and coffee and not the worship or the hard work of building a world ruled by love. Hospitality is a part of such a world and is not to be overlooked but there is so much more to God’s abundant life.

Prayer: Loving Creator, as we seek your abundant life for ourselves use us to assure all your children live in your abundance. Amen.

*John 10:10b,

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

 

Abundant Life

Living in the Spirit
July 7, 2018

Scripture Reading: Mark 6:1-13

He left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, ‘Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?’ And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.’ And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief. Then he went about among the villages teaching. –Mark 6:1-6

People do not want to hear the reality they do not want to happen and thus we tend to discount the messenger speaking the reality. This was not only true of Jesus but the prophets that went before him and the prophets that followed him who met the same fate. We see it in the ones living near raging fires who refuse to evacuate to safety holding on to the slender hope that they will not be caught in the inferno, often placing at risk the people who may ultimately force them to leave or remove their dead bodies from the ashes. We see it in the people who hold tightly to their out-of-control greed who think they can make just one more million despite the damage it does to themselves and others. It is as if we never read the Hebrew Bible, never were able to look back and see that the prophets were right. Never had the story of Joseph read to us as children telling the Pharaoh of Egypt that seven years of famine were coming and thus they should prepare for it.

One of the influences that cause humans to ignore truth is we do not take the time to see how we fit in the bigger picture of God’s divine plan. The story of creation is full of the statement God created and it was good. Because we were created out of an abundance of love that was present at the beginning and is still with us today, God wants the very best for each of God’s children. Jesus puts it this way in Luke 11:11 Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish?  If God loves us so much, surely it is worth our time and effort to seek God’s guidance for what protects our best interest and follow it as closely as possible.

Prayer: O Love, that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in Thee;
I give Thee back the life I owe,
That in Thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be*. Amen.

*First verse of the hymn O Love, That Wilt Not Let Me Go by George Matheson. See at https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/h/432

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Worth an Wealth

Living in the Spirit
September 24, 2017

Scripture Reading: Matthew 20:1-16

When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, “Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.” When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” But he replied to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?” So the last will be first, and the first will be last.’—Matthew 20:8-16

When did associating personal worth with financial wealth begin? History suggests a very early onset. Jesus proposed a different measure. Personal worth is innate to all people, and he desired that all would have more than they anticipate regarding the characteristics of life many of which are of far greater value than financial success, such as sharing love, having a purpose, growing in spirit and truth. John 10.10 quotes Jesus as saying: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

 Maslow’s hierarchy of needs indicates that people need to have basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter; and safety met before they can move on toward the abundance Jesus describe. Abundance for all involves working toward a world without poverty, crime, and war. It requires a shift in our priorities. Is our purpose in life to accumulate wealth or to live in a world where charity is no longer necessary, crime is obsolete, and we no longer practice war anymore?

If we extend our scriptural story today to tomorrow, the latecomers are now the early hires having to deal with the new guys on the block getting paid the same wage they received for longer hours of work. Sounds like the American experience of immigration, doesn’t it?

Prayer: Lord, help us see your priorities as the better way and help us adapt to them. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

The Christ Factor

living_wageLiving in the Spirit
July 24, 2015

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 3:14-21

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.—Ephesians 3:20-21

Synergy is the systems term used to describe that which is greater than the sum of its parts. It is the Christ Factor in the church. When we work in cooperation and collaboration with Jesus Christ we never work alone. When we work together as part of the whole Body of Christ the oneness that results can and does change the world. We forget that at times.

I am not talking about dumbing down enabling everyone to get along just for the sake of getting along. I am talking about jumping into the deep end of love where we struggle to understand one another, seek the Lord in every person we encounter, and reach toward the abundant life that Jesus talked about and that the letter to the Ephesians describes in our scripture today.

I have a passion for living in a world where everyone who works earns a living wage. In striving toward such a reality, I have learned how very hard it is to accomplish for small service industry businesses. Making a living wage even possible will take all of our creative efforts and major systems changes over time in our tax structures, for example. The winners and losers will have to shift a bit, but, I believe, all will eventually benefit from a world where all people are able to live to their full potential. Of course, a living wage is just one facet of that abundant life but it is a facet that is in our grasp and is foundational to other progress.

Christ’s call to oneness was accompanied by the promise of his presence. We need to lean on that promise as we spread the love of God throughout the world.

Prayer: Holy One, we thank you for your constant presence with us. When we falter and turn away, draw us back to you. Show us your way. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Fear and Love

abundant life 2Eastertide
May 1, 2015

Scripture Reading: 1 John 4:7-21

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us. Those who say, ‘I love God’, and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also. __1 John 4:18-21

Some are just angry, others are very much afraid. It demonstrates itself sometimes in paranoia and sometimes in downright hatred. It is an interesting time to be white in a world that is more and more a continuum of flesh tones reaching from white to deepest ebony. It is an interesting time to be in the role of the “emperor” when we worship a God who champions the oppressed.

The answer is quite simple. We are to love each other, but the doing of that basic task is hard for we must strip away layer by layer the preconceived notions that we have about ourselves and about the other before we can love them and they can learn to love us in return. This means we have to take the time to really get to know ourselves and to know the individual others. For some reason, some of us who call ourselves Christian, have adapted the language of exclusion and exceptionalism. Being chosen by God does not mean we are better than anyone, it means we have been called to be a blessing to everyone. All of God’s children are exceptional and all children, even when they grow to being adults, are God’s.  Unique as the varied snowflakes, we have each been created to serve a distinct and vital part in the kingdom of God.

Those of us who find ourselves living in relative comfort, even prosperity, are faced with the challenge of loving the rest of the world in ways that will enable them to know the abundance of life of which Jesus spoke: John 10:10, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. God calls us to be seekers of justice.

Prayer: Lord, I lift myself to you. Mold me and make me like thee. Erase my fear, enable my courage, and strengthen my ability to love like you. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.