Stories of Faith: Gifts of Light

Read Matthew 25:14-30

This is an interesting passage on many levels

Some Scholars reflect upon this passage from Matthew

And Say the Sin of third Worker

Is that he did not use his Talents that he had been given to the fullest extent

And that one of the reasons

This third worker is saying to the owner

In his hurling of hurtful put downs

Is that the owner is one that has been extremely risky yet successful

Use of the gifts..

The third worker and owner in many ways

are opposite ends of the spectrum

when it comes to God’s gifts…

Do I spend and use,            or save and protect?

When was the last time you have been like the owner?

And been a bit risky, used you gifts and tried to do something big???

    Maybe you are more like the third worker?

You have gotten a gift and held onto, tight, kept it secure??

to many of you, many of us~ Risky is not good

Safe, holding on to the wealth and treasure given to us, is better

And don’t get me too wrong, I am not trying to knock this too much

But I would challenge you to think about what you need to hear

To convince you a moment is right,

 correct time to use that which you have been given

How will you know?

Or will you save it for the next time. 

~~Story about Grandpa Wright and his Salad Dressing~~

Do you spend and use,      or save and protect?

What do you do with a gift once it has been given to you

How are we to make any sense

Of this odd and crazy parable about talents and bags of gold?

What do you with your gift?

And how might it change you faith or the faith of others?

~~Story about the UCC minister and the Taxi cab Driver who met St Peter at the Gates of heaven~~

Sometimes each of us have gifts

Gifts of light that we might never see or understand or ever recognize

But that is a problem of our perception

As God has given the Gift

WE merely need to try and use it in a correct fashion

~~Story of Christmas’ Eve Candle Light~~

The room takes on a spirit that is amazing

Yet this Simple little candle light, spread to others

Is much different as people are welcomed and challenged

To raise there hands

Filling the room with a glow that is worthy of welcoming

The baby Jesus~ Emanuel~ the prince of peace

Friends this is the challenge to each of

Whenever we hear a parable of Jesus

We need to make gift of the parable… Real

We need to make the light given to us by God… Real

We need to use our gift of light

To make the kingdom come

God’s will to be done

On earth as in heaven

So how will you share your light?

Don’t hide it

But raise you hand high

May you have the Courage to make the parables become alive

As you living into the Grace and power God has given each of you

May you have the wisdom to accept

And share

Your gift of light

This day and in all your days

Amen

Stories of Faith: Honor

Read Matthew 21:33-44

If look how this parable comes to life

   I believe it is a challenge for us to look at Honor in our life,

 in our world, and in our faith

Have you ever thought about how you honor something or someone?

How you have showed them or it

That they are important

Honor is not something we tend to give lightly

And if we lose honor for something

We tend to have a hard time giving the honor back

How many times have you lost the sense of honor

you had for something or someone

How many times have you made a mistake

 or done something that has gone against your honor

~ did you learn from it?

A welsh proverb once said

“That to be honorable yourself

You need to associate with honorable people”

Do you hang out with an honorable crowd?

Do you honor yourself by doing things that make a difference

Or live into your faith in the small ways that no one sees

Thereby honoring God with you whole being?\

…

Many times in the bible and specifically

In the parables

Jesus Challenges

His followers to reimaging the kingdom of God

He challenge them to understand other people

He even goes so far as to describe them as Neighbors

Someone as close a brother or sister~ honor them

…

Some of us have given of ourselves for others

Maybe for a child, a loved one, a parent, a spouse or a partner

Maybe we have given because it was right and it was the just things to do

Maybe some of continue to question

God is in our midst as we give

Wiping away our doubt and fear

For truly as we honor another, we honor God

…

Think about something

How are you going to take the time in 2010

to work on honor in your life

How will you honor your parents (with us or passed away)

How will you honor spouse     or partner

How will you honor your children      or grandchildren

How will you honor yourself,

    truly honor all the you are     and are not

and how does this reflect upon the way you praise God

May you Honor God Today, by honoring another…

Peace~RH

Stories of Faith: Soil

  Matthew 13: 3-12

Author and Philosopher from Belfast~Peter Rollins
Says: "Parables represent a mode of communicating that cannot be heard without being heeded, in Which the only evidence of having its message is the fleshly incarnation of that message" heard its message" The Orthodox Heretic

Parables are part of the story of our faith

That can not be just heard

But indeed change us form the inside out if they are indeed true

Have you ever experienced something profound

Yet had a tough time trying to explain it

But as you hear yourself speak

You words do not fit the experience and change you feel from it

Yet you do not have any other words to give

Or letters to string together in any logical type of way

And no matter what

You words fall short of~ this thing you experience

And how it has formed you

       and moved your life to some place  of change

based on the faith and conviction of everlasting grace through God

This friends is a parable

~~Story of the person, the tiger, the mouse, the branch and God~~

How many times have you doubted something,

When you were told this is the fact?

 It is human nature not to let go of branches in life. 

I’m not going to stand up here

and tell you well you know you how easy it to let go in faith,

because I know that I have held onto a fair amount of branches in my life.

  I also know that there have been times that I have let go,

and it is only through going through it that I have seen the good

Stories and the Parables lead us to a deeper sense

of what the truth is for our life

or as Peter Rollins says

they become the “fleshy incarnation of the message”

Author and Theologian ~CH Dodd

Shares four characteristics that are found in parables

1~Is comparison, a metaphor or simile

2~Describing something known or familiar with something unknown or new

3~An unexpected twist or turn in what is being shared

4~after done it prompts some engagement or reaction from hearer

How many parables have you heard in you life?

How many stories or passages of odd yet life giving facts have you heard

The world is full of parables

How many of us take time to listen and learn

We live in a world that is becoming increasing more full of facts

and information, which is accessible quicker and quicker,

via Wikipedia and google

Yet sometime it feels like we get bogged down with finding more and more

That we end up watching the news on the TV loops the same facts for hours

But with all the new sources for facts

Do any of you feel closer to the truth

  Any closer to the Good Soil ~ Jesus tell his disciples

Is the secret to growing the seeds of life

~Story of the boy, his watching dad, his mother and big rock the Sandbox~

Are you ready to be the Good Soil?

Are you ready to let go of the branch of doubt?

Are you ready to wipe away your tear and ask for help

   To move away the rock you are struggling with?

The other day I was online and i came across a video that got me thinking.
   I am not sure why..
I am not, and never have been a skateboard person. 
But it does amaze me why a group of folks,a  video productions studio and band named Unkle would want to called this Heaven..

My guess is that this is how they visioned Heaven to be like.
  What do you envision Heaven to look?

Maybe Heaven is ultimate Freedom??
 The Video from Unkle has many images of Freedom

• Being on a skateboard is freedom
  

• Breaking through a wall is freedom

Having that which you know to change is Freedom.

In the bible (John 14:2) Jesus describes Heaven as a House made by God with many Rooms, Room for each of us if we need it.

and in Paul's Writing ( Ephesians 3:20) Heaven is described as more then we could ever ask for in one location.

Could Heaven be the only place that God has given us that we can be truly free? 
  It could be.....
Untill I get there I only have images from artist and musicians

I hope that you are able to give one person a sense of Heaven Today

Peace~RH