Tag Archives: Onenes

Acceptance

Ordinary Time

Scripture Reading:
1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’—1 Corinthians 1:26-31

I was having a sleepover with a good friend when I was in the fifth grade. After dinner, my friend and I were supposed to be doing homework sitting on the floor in her family’s living room while her mother was cleaning up the dishes. A boy had been placed in our class that week who came to our town to live with a foster family. He and his brother had apparently not attended school for a while. After the school staff reviewed the records on the boys and visited with them, the principal determined that the younger one, who was 15 needed to be placed in the fifth grade. He was already six feet tall and could barely sit behind a fifth-grade desk.

While working on our homework, my friend and I started calling him dumb and laughing about how he dressed. Suddenly my friend’s mother appeared in the doorway, still drying a frying pan in her hands, and said, “ I want you girls to stop making fun of the new boy in your class. You aren’t any better than he is.” And she turned back into the kitchen. Just as quickly, she reappeared and said, “And nobody is better than you.” That was one of the most powerful lessons I have ever learned, and it still has a powerful impact on me to this day.

Prayer: Help us accept each other as Christ accepted us;
teach us as sister, brother, each person to embrace.
Be present, Lord, among us and bring us to believe
we are ourselves accepted and meant to love and live*. Amen

First verse of the hymn Help us Accept Each Other by Fred Kaan, See at http://www.pateys.nf.ca/cgi-bin/lyrics.pl?hymnnumber=632

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.

Jesus’ Priorities

Priorities-1-2Eastertide
April 10, 2016

Scripture Reading: John 21:1-19

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep. –John 21:15-17

Jesus’ constant challenges to us as his disciples is “What are your priorities?” A lot of us probably muddle through life doing the everyday things of living without a lot of thought to our priorities. For priorities to really work they must become habits. It is interesting to me the habits I have that I have no difficultly practicing religiously and the ones that I can drop without a moment’s notice. Apparently the act of doing things repetitiously does not always create a habit. Childhood is when most of our true habits are formed. When I was a child, teeth flossing was not in vogue so when the dentist first told me to add it to my routine, it did not come easily. I still have to be intentional about teeth flossing. Although if I have not brushed my teeth by ten o’clock in the morning, my mouth begins to feel dirty.

In our busy world we have consistently to carve out time to spend with God and that includes touching base with God routinely throughout the day. Our being in synch with God drives the way we treat those about us. Jesus’ priority as described here in his discourse with Peter is that we are to nurture each other as he has nurtured us and is nurturing us still, when we open our being to him.

What are our priorities? Where do we invest our time, talent, and treasure? Identifying that will help us see the priorities we are actually following. Are they the priorities we would name as our priorities? If not, does our list of priorities need to change or our lives? What can we do today to bring our priorities into synch with God’s?

Prayer: Lord, help me see clearly the priorities I am living. If they are not in line with your priorities guide me to the right path. 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.