Kingdom Building
September 22, 2019
Scripture Reading: Luke 16:1-13
‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.’ –Luke 16:10-13
Whom do we serve? How many masters are competing for our time and talent? How do we discern what is of God and what is not? There are hard questions to answer primarily because we are torn between competing desires. A popular song when I was a child was Que será, será* –Whatever will be will be. It has a catchy tune and is fun to sing. My mother was not impressed by its message. She not only did not like its emphasis on being pretty and rich; she also did not like its value that what happens in life is totally left up to fate.
When I was just a little girl
I asked my mother, what will I be
Will I be pretty
Will I be rich
Here’s what she said to me
Que será, será
Whatever will be, will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que será, será
What will be, will be
On September 20, 2019, I saw on news programs children and youth from around the world take to the streets demanding that we adults, and our leaders quickly address the rising problems of climate change. They are seeing the future and seeing the need to address sure and certain climate related problems that will impact it markedly.
Serving God demands that we live wisely and do not let the whims of the world distract us from our primary purpose of creating a more Godlike world—a world that recognizes what we do impacts others for better or for worse.
Prayer: Lord, walk with us through the shadows of temptations to stray away from being faithful to your call to let love, not fate determine our future. Amen.
*Verse one and chorus of Que será, será by Jay Livingston / Ray Evans see at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Que_Sera,_Sera_(Whatever_Will_Be,_Will_Be)
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.