On the Way to Wonder

12 Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious,

    but fools are consumed by their own lips.

Ecclesiastes 10:12

The words of a wise person are full of grace, are gracious.  Let’s ponder that.  I first think of the explanation to the 8th commandment, 

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

What does this mean?

We should fear and love God, so that we do not lie about, betray or slander our neighbor, but excuse him, speak well of him, and put the best construction on everything. (Martin Luther)

I like one of the internet’s definition of grace as “courteous goodwill.”  It might mean that the person looks for the good in another rather than finding faults and weakness.  It could mean refusing to pass along gossip that is not proven and not helpful. Lies twist the truth for destruction but gracious words seek to build and enhance the good in another.

As a young adult, a wise person advised me that when I woke each morning, I spend 5 minutes saying “thank you” prayers. I try to avoid the “give-me” prayers but indeed I spend a fair share of time reminding God my concerns about this and that.  Spending time using my words to praise others or God is always an encouraging experience.  During this political season when it is so easy to find the faults in the other candidate, it is easy to become discouraged and cynical about the future.  Lord, help us to speak well of others and put the best construction on everything!

10 Dead flies will cause even a bottle of perfume to stink! Yes, a small mistake can outweigh much wisdom and honor. 2 A wise man’s heart leads him to do right, and a fool’s heart leads him to do evil. 3 You can identify a fool just by the way he walks down the street!

4 If the boss is angry with you, don’t quit! A quiet spirit will quiet his bad temper.

5 There is another evil I have seen as I have watched the world go by, a sad situation concerning kings and rulers: 6 For I have seen foolish men given great authority and rich men not given their rightful place of dignity! 7 I have even seen servants riding, while princes walk like servants!

Ecclesiastes 10:1-7, The Living Bible

Flip flops are those cheap rubber sandles with a divider between the toes.  I think they got their name from the sound they make as you walk along.  “Flip flop” can also refer to things being turned upside down and so resulting in the opposite of what was intended.  The Teacher is still comparing wisdom and foolishness but showing how a little foolishness can flip flop a situation and overturn a wise plan.  Beautiful perfume stinks because of dead flies.  The perfume’s value is turned upside down. Today the Teacher adds verse 6 and remembers meeting a foolish man having authority while the rich man who has demonstrated his ability to handle money, is not honored.  A servant rides a horse and a prince walks.  That is a flip flop from what we would expect.

I suspect sometimes we think of a foolish person as a stupid person and a wise person as someone who is smart.  But biblically these words are not related to IQ, intelligence.  In verse 2 the Teacher defines wisdom as the person who follows what is right, what is revealed by God, and the fool chooses to follow evil, not following God’s leading, perhaps following the person’s own foolish desires.  I suspect we all recognize the scenario.  I know I shouldn’t eat that cake because of diabetes or weight but I convince myself I’ll exercise later or get back on the diet tomorrow.  That is my sink hole but the decisions we make can be far more devastating and flip flop our lives.  I think of those dating choices to be popular.  Then we might be tempted to fudge on income tax returns but get called in to the IRS.  Ooops. Those white lies which might seem innocent can bring disaster.

So what helps us be wise? What helps us to choose wise alternatives?  Partly we have to ask ourselves if we are growing in our knowledge of God’s will or do we like to listen to others tell us what they think.  Wise friends are always something to be valued.  And then let me add the African proverb we learned on first arriving in Kenya, “Haraka, haraka, haina baraka.”  Hurry, hurry has. no blessing.  Lord, guard us from the tyranny of the urgent and help us to take a deep breath, sit back and choose your way as we make decisions today.

4 If a ruler’s anger rises against you,

    do not leave your post;

    calmness can lay great offenses to rest.

Ecclesiastes 10:4

We ended last week thinking about the verses at the beginning of Ecclesiastes chapter 10 and the Teacher warning us about dead flies spoiling good perfume and fools walking on the side of the road and not paying attention.  Is there a thread between those verses and the Teacher’s next reflection about an upset boss?  It feels to me as I read it that the person involved feels innocent of doing anything wrong.  That makes me think that the fly of gossip or false accusation flew into the perfume of his good work and messed everything up.  The person feels misunderstood.  I think we can all identify with that.

I have a vivid childhood memory of my father giving my mother a new iron skillet for Christmas.  My father was delighted because it was such a practical and needed gift to make cooking easier for my mother.  My mother was not happy and we could all see the disappointment on her face and in the sharp response of her mouth.  It did not escalate into an accusation conversation as my father somehow soothed my mother’s feathers.  Misunderstandings are like that.  There is some lie hidden under the surface of the event that leads to false interpretations of motives.  The Teacher advises against fleeing, against denial, and advises that we stay calm and continue doing our job responsibly.

In Proverbs 15:1 Solomon advises, “A gentle answer turns away wrath and a harsh word stirs up anger.” This week we will probably all have the opportunity to remind ourselves to think twice and count to ten before we respond with a quick answer.  May we remember that Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”

Lord we pray for those in our political arena now whose lives are coming under public inspection, we pray for those struggling in relationships struggling with misunderstanding, and may we all guard our mouths,  stay calm and be responsible in our duties.  We need your help.

7th Sunday after Pentecost

First Reading: Ezekiel 2:1-5

1 [A voice] said to me: O mortal, stand up on your feet, and I will speak with you.2 And when he spoke to me, a spirit entered into me and set me on my feet; and I heard him speaking to me. 3 He said to me, Mortal, I am sending you to the people of Israel, to a nation of rebels who have rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have transgressed against me to this very day. 4 The descendants are impudent and stubborn. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, “Thus says the Lord God.” 5 Whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house), they shall know that there has been a prophet among them.

Psalm: Psalm 123

Our eyes look to you, O God, until you show us your mercy. (Ps. 123:2)

 1 To you I lift up my eyes,

  to you enthroned in the heavens.

 2 As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, and the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,

  so our eyes look to you, O Lord our God, until you show us your mercy. 

 3 Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy,

  for we have had more than enough of contempt,

 4 too much of the scorn of the indolent rich,

  and of the derision of the proud. 

Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 12:2-10

2 I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows. 3 And I know that such a person—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows—4 was caught up into Paradise and heard things that are not to be told, that no mortal is permitted to repeat. 5 On behalf of such a one I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. 6 But if I wish to boast, I will not be a fool, for I will be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think better of me than what is seen in me or heard from me, 7 even considering the exceptional character of the revelations. Therefore, to keep me from being too elated, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. 8 Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, 9 but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I  am weak, then I am strong.

Gospel: Mark 6:1-13

1 [Jesus] came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him.2 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! 3 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. 4 Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” 5 And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief.

  Then he went about among the villages teaching. 7 He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8 He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; 9 but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. 10 He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 11 If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. 13 They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.

CHILDREN’S SERMON:   This week we celebrated July 4th.  We call it Independence Day.  Freedom is one of our big words Americans value.  The First Amendment to the Constitution lists five basic freedoms guaranteed to all Americans.  Can you list them?

First Amendment protects the right of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition.  Actually, the second amendment protects the right to carry arms.

It is in the Declaration of Independence signed on July 4th that penned those famous words, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Prayer:  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight my Rock and my Redeemer!

SERMON 

If we were to share some “high” and “low” moments as we look at the life of Jesus seen through the eyes of Mark, certainly the last two Sundays have been highs.  Jesus, calmed a storm on the sea of Galilee. Jesus had been asleep in the disciples’ boat when the disciples had cried,  “Don’t you care that we drown?”  He did care and he calmed the sea.  Last week he healed two women, well, a girl and an elderly lady, who were at the point of death.  Jairus had received the news that his daughter had died but Jesus responded, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”  Mark has built our expectations.  Our text continues and we read that Jesus next walks into his hometown, Nazareth, and into the synagogue and teaches.  But Jesus did not receive the conquering hero welcome.  He was not hoisted onto shoulders and cheered.  Something blocked his power to care and their faith in him.

“And they took offense at him.”

Today we as American Christians live in tension. Last Thursday we celebrated Independence Day, July 4th, and honored the signing of the Declaration of Independence that declared our separation from Great Britain. Every year we celebrate our freedoms and our right to not be bossed around by a distant authority.  But today’s Gospel text seems to contradict independence cries and calls us to the reality of a life of faith, dependence on a God, whom many experience as distant and unseen, just like King George III back in the day.  While we, as Christians, celebrate independence in our country, we also come here today to acknowledge our total dependence on our God.

 We read that Jesus, after the amazing miracles, returned to his hometown but there were no parades, no fireworks, no parties, and no holiday.  It would seem the hometown folks were willing to reject Jesus. What was the problem?  Their past experience with Jesus and their expectations of what a Messiah would look like stood in the way.  They knew Jesus as a carpenter, son of Mary, an illegitimate child.  He did not fit their idea of a Messiah.  Only a few begged him for help.   Perhaps we like the people of Nazareth have some blinder that blocks our faith and that we need to remove.

The people of Nazareth may well have remembered the circumstances around Jesus’ birth.  We think of beautiful creche scenes but they may well have thought about all the questions being gossiped when Mary became pregnant.  Jesus is called the son of Mary and Joseph is conspicuously missing.  I wonder if King George III did not also scorn the pilgrims who rejected his authority and who had formed a new identity in the new world.  Perhaps he questioned how they could have any understanding of government and how could they question his kingly authority from way over in the New World.  I would guess that King George III felt the people in the New World had forgotten who they were and were rejecting their roots and him! 

      Jesus, the carpenter, the son of Mary, returned home but the town-folks closed their hearts to his “wisdom” and power.  Jesus had grown up and become a known healer and teacher but they could not let go of the past.  Overcoming our past stereotypes, modifying the way we have always experienced someone  is more than challenging.  It is sometimes impossible to break down those walls.  Nazareth was unable to hear Jesus.  King George III was unable to work with the Colonies.  In both cases, leaders of both sides thought they knew “the other” based on old experiences. 

      We might ask ourselves, “How are we closed to new works of the Holy Spirit?”  Is our faith the same as when we finished confirmation — are we growing in our relationship with God?  Are we locked in the past or are we walking into the future?  Often we have ideas on how we think God ought to be handling situations and miss seeing how he is working.

      This text today warns us about becoming inflexible in our relationship with God.  We are also reminded today by our own historical equivalent.  The pilgrims and England grew further and further apart.  The relationship with England needed to transform and grow as the pilgrims transformed and grew in their new reality in the new world.  The colonies came to the point of fighting for independence as they demanded adulthood.  Ouch.  We are in the same danger spiritually as we can grow socially, economically, or physically and outgrow confirmation vows.  We can deceive ourselves into thinking we no longer need Jesus.  It is true.  We don’t need childhood faith; we need adult faith.  Jesus is not the little babe in the manger and we are no longer children in the Christmas play.  Pentecost is talking about that growth.  Clinging to the past can blind us to our future.

“Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, 

and among their own kin, and in their own house.”   

    Jesus tries to revise the homefolk’s understanding.  He is not the illegitimate son of Mary but is actually walking in the steps of the Prophets of the Old Testament.  Prophets arose in Israel with a message from God that confronted culture and called for a return to God.  That is different from a return to religion.  Prophets call people back to relationship with God and away from empty rituals.  Just going to church achieves nothing if our hearts are not right with God.  Jesus “could do no deed of power there.”  Being frozen in the past blocked the faith to allow Jesus to work in the present. Relationship with God is a partnership.  We are not his drones.  In the same way, King George III clung to old ideas about government and was unable to forge a new working relationship with his new colonies.  War became inevitable.  Spiritual struggles are inevitable as we outgrow old disciplines that don’t serve us any more.  Hopefully as we mature our faith matures. 

      Historically the colonies called the result of that war “independence.”  For the people of Nazareth, the outcome of the lack of faith was that Jesus could only do a few miracles.  They rejected this grownup Jesus and faith in him that acknowledges dependence on him.  And here the analogy breaks down.  We do not know what would have happened if the colonies had stayed a protectorate of England.  It was a changing point in the history of the world.  When we choose dependence on God, we change our history and the history of the world changes. Faith connects us to God and when we declare independence, we become disconnected from our power source.

7 He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two,

 and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 

      The followers of Jesus were watching all this take place.  They saw the truth that not all people will want to listen to Jesus and not all sharing ends in faith and trust in Jesus.  Not all people will choose to be part of the kingdom of heaven. The disciples also see that the rejection of Jesus by his hometown people does not stop Jesus from sharing.  Jesus is not trying to build popularity but is trying to build a kingdom.  I suspect there is a lesson here for those of us who like to be liked.   Popularity and success are not necessarily good criteria of whether we are in God’s will.  We tend to think that the big popular churches have the right message with the right programs and indeed that may help many but there is also a place for the small church. People in Nazareth were not open to  Jesus but Jesus did not quit but moved on to the surrounding villages and sent his disciples out to share.

     The colonies did not want to stay connected to England.  War and soldiers could not resolve that split.  Sometimes we need to honor that it is not the right time nor the right place and perhaps we are not the right person to be sharing truth with another.  It does not mean we must stop loving, stop reaching out, or stop praying for those resistant to the message of Christ.  It makes me think of our saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.”  I may not be the person who can reach my child as the child struggles with my authority and faith but my sister, her aunt might, or a person at church. Jesus may not be accepted in his hometown but perhaps a disciple would be listened to. 

       Jesus then moved on to the surrounding villages teaching and did not waste emotional energy on this rejection, as painful as it may have been.  We see a shift in Jesus’ approach now.  Jesus starts sending out the disciples two by two.  Jesus now is teaching his disciples to disciple!  They are sent out, not as independent from him, but as his representatives, dependent on him and each other.  We are making a subtle shift today from stories that involve Jesus as a key figure to a community that represents him.  God is laying the seeds for the Book of Acts.  

Jesus gives the disciples authority over unclean spirits and tells them not to worry about provisions for the journey.  The colonies too came to a point where they stopped trying to develop relationship with England for their needs and stepped into their future.  They would no longer be tied to England.  Of course we see ourselves as the good guys and identify with the disciples and the colonies.  That may be stretching this analogy too far but Jesus changes his approach and the colonies change their approach.  They gradually become willing to face the challenges before them. Perhaps this is not spiritual truth but the colonists chose to forge a new future.  As we accept our dependence on Jesus we choose to forge a future shaped by that relationship. The colonies would forge a nation but the disciples would forge a church eventually. And we are charged to continue reaching out beyond our comfort zone, using new skills and being the means of growing the Kingdom of Heaven.

“8 He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff”

    Our text this morning now becomes a lesson about dependence, not independence.  Faith grows when we depend on God.  I do not think that means we should all stop working and go door to door sharing the Gospel.  For us I think dependence on God means not needing to worry about my daily needs because God will provide.  It speaks to the priorities of our values.  Jesus sends the disciples out with instructions about not worrying about shoes, cloaks, food and money.  They are not to worry if they are rejected.  This is easier said than done for us.  We love our “stuff” and we worry about our security.  All we need to do is listen to commercials about insurance for all the unpredictable events of life!  Finding the emotional balance between independence and dependence is a continual battle. We need wisdom to find the right balance.

      In the Sermon on the Mount, the example of the lilies of the valley that neither toil nor work but are clothed in glory, encourages us.  Worry cannot add a minute to our lives for our lives are in God’s hands.  We can depend on God.  Likewise, when people reject us or our faith we can shake the dust from our feet and move on because our security does not depend on their approval of us.  Our dependency on God changes our whole approach to life and our relationships.  That does not mean we can be arrogant and not care about people but it does mean our security is in God and our concerns for the other.  We are dependent on him for our life and our security.

      So where does this leave us today?  We celebrate our independence and freedoms as Americans and we can thank God for the many blessing we have from living in the United States.  We celebrate our dependence as Christians on a God who is trustworthy and aware of our needs.  We are not bound to unfair laws imposed by authorities that do not know us and respect us, at least theoretically.  We are bound to a God who travels with us unseen but caring.  May we never forget that we are dependent on the God who incarnated, who walked in our shoes and who knows our world and our weaknesses and challenges.  God is not sitting across an ocean or far away up in the heavenlies. He is present and he sees us.  God is not working for the economic profit of his empire but for the good of his church.   We must never think we can be independent of his love, his guidance, and his care.  Our country celebrated independence today but our church celebrates a God we can depend on.  We are dependent and proud of it!  

Let the people of God say, “AMEN.”

by Maranatha Singers

Maranatha Singers – Unto Thee O Lord [with lyrics]

This has been a rocky week for some of us.  Thursday many celebrated July 4th and Independence Day while others braced for Hurricane  Beryl and still others sweltered under extreme heat conditions.  We won’t mention those racking their brains trying to sort their thoughts on who should run for which party in the elections this Fall.  Independence seems like a dream as we are tossed and turned by the challenges of life.  Tomorrow we will look at a Gospel text.  Some will openly reject Jesus while others will be cured of demons and illness.  With all the of independence politically we still bow our heads and cry to God for help.  We are dependent on his aide.  So this Maranatha song seems appropriate for now.  Unto thee O Lord….we turn our eyes and lift our hands.

10 As dead flies give perfume a bad smell,  so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.

3 Even as fools walk along the road, they lack senseand show everyone how stupid they are.

Ecclesiastes 10:1-3

The Teacher now uses some images to talk about wisdom that are not so familiar.  I am guessing not many of us have had perfume where flies get stuck, die and decay.  Perhaps honey would be our equivalent.  When we lived in a famine relief camp with people living in cardboard houses, manure piles from animal dung piled around the village, and no local refrigeration, flies were a continual nuisance.  The leg of cow hung in the butcher’s shop and we bought meat without bone or with bone.  Both had flies.  We tried hanging a sticky tape from the ceiling in the kitchen over our pet turtle and flies were its protein.  My take-away is that flies alert the observer that there is possible contamination.

Likewise we are told to walk or ride our bicycle facing traffic.  When I see someone walking in the same direction as my car is moving and if the person is in my lane, or even worse weaving as the person walks, or walking in a group, I am immediately aware that they are not paying attention to me coming up behind.  Even as with the flies, I slow down and think twice before I act – buy food or drive past.

So how do we contaminate our faith and how do we become careless and get distracted as we walk through our lives?  Perhaps one answer is that flies do not belong in perfume and pedestrians do not belong walking in the same lane as cars.  Both are out of place.  Let us ask the Holy Spirit to shine its flashlight on our lives and consciences and show us if there are any places in our life where we are contaminating or compromising our faith walk or if there are ways we are getting sloppy in our spiritual disciplines.  Perhaps we need to pull up our socks.  Lord, speak to me as I wait and listen.  

13-15 One day as I was observing how wisdom fares on this earth, I saw something that made me sit up and take notice. There was a small town with only a few people in it. A strong king came and mounted an attack, building trenches and attack posts around it. There was a poor but wise man in that town whose wisdom saved the town, but he was promptly forgotten. (He was only a poor man, after all.)

16 All the same, I still say that wisdom is better than muscle, even though the wise poor man was treated with contempt and soon forgotten.

17 The quiet words of the wise are more effective
Than the ranting of a king of fools.

18 Wisdom is better than warheads,
But one hothead can ruin the good earth.

Ecclesiastes 9:13-18 (The Message)

These verses remind me of the story found in 2 Samuel 20.  After King David returns from the attempted coup by his son Absolum, he has to deal with Sheba, son of Bikri, who leads a rebellion against David.  Sheba runs and hides in a town that is attacked by Joab leading David’s army.  A small town is besieged by an army.  A wise woman goes to the wall of the town and calls for Joab, declare’s the town’s loyalty to David and asks what must be done.  Joab says they are only after Sheba.  The next morning the head of Sheba is thrown down to the army and the town is saved.  The woman is only remembered as “a wise woman.”

Many times we face what seems to be a big problem that is overwhelming us.  We are overwhelmed with waves of doubt and visions of all the terrible repercussions that might happen.  At those times it often helps to find a faithful friend whom you consider wise, to sit and discuss your dilemma with. .Take time to breath, pray, and talk with a friend to figure out the key issue in the midst of the dilemma.  Finding that key detail helps us cope with the bigger picture.  The Teacher advocate wisdom rather than trying to muscle our way out of a big problem in our own power.

Today we celebrate July 4th when we signed the Declaration of Independence.  This is certainly an example of a small group standing up to the larger, more powerful.  I am not prepared to say if that was wisdom but it certainly changed the history for us.  Lord, give us the wisdom we need for the battles we fight.

“Though one may be overpowered, 

two can defend themselves. 

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.  

(Ecclesiastes 4:12)”

11 I have seen something else under the sun:

The race is not to the swift
    or the battle to the strong,
nor does food come to the wise
    or wealth to the brilliant
    or favor to the learned;
but time and chance happen to them all.

12 Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come:

As fish are caught in a cruel net,
    or birds are taken in a snare,
so people are trapped by evil times
    that fall unexpectedly upon them.

Ecclesiastes 9:11-12

How interesting that we come onto these verses right now when all the pretrials for the Olympics are being played on social media. The best of the best compete against each other and we think we know who the favored winner is but there is always a chance that someone has a bad day.  The judges don’t always score the way we think.  The movie “Cool Runnings” featuring the Jamaican bobsled team is great fun.  We cheer for the underdog.

The Teacher goes on to point out other “twists of fate.”  A clever general may win a battle over a stronger opponent.  The recession saw many college grads without work.  Education no longer guarantees a better paying job.  Talent and trade skills are also good jobs.  Life is just not always predictable.  One of the idioms I like is when we talk about “going down a rabbit hole” that calls to mind Alice falling down a rabbit hole that leads her to an unexpected place.  We might talk about going on “a wild goose chase.”  Sometimes we end up in places we had not planned on.

The Biblical story that we learned about as children is David and Goliath.  Goliath thinks he is the best warrior and challenges the army of Saul to send out someone to decide the battle by those two fighting. The army of the winner will serve the country of the other.   Goliath is 7 feet tall and is the apparent stronger.  Saul’s army is terrified.   David comes in from tending the sheep and offers to fight.  With his sling shot and five smooth stones he falls the giant.  But what we remember is his cry, 

“You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 1 Samuel 17:45”

As we deal with the unpredictability in the midst of life’s battles, it is a great comfort that we have an unseen Savior fighting with us.  Blessings as you tackle your challenges today.

10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.

Ecclesiastes 9:10

Verses 7-9 in chapter 9 of Ecclessiastes summarizes the thinking of the Teacher about the goodness of life.  Epicurus, the Greek philosopher, had a very similar philosophy about life.  Sometimes we call it hedonism.  Hedonism is the theory that seeking pleasure and satisfaction of our desires is the highest good and goal of human life.  I note there are some differences in the two theories.

  The Teacher is not advocating chasing pleasure as much as doing “whatever” you might be called to do, the task in front of you.  So teaching young minds and forming them is as important as teaching Bible school.  The mailman who faithfully delivers the mail each day or the person serving meals to people rushing off to work are both important.  Finding the joy and pleasure in our daily   tasks is not the same as chasing my desires and serving self.  The Teacher is focused on serving others and Hedonism is focused on self.  The Teacher also sets his advice opposite death when we will no longer be working, he reasons.

So let’s think of a few things that will face us today.  Perhaps divide the paper in half and think of three tasks you look forward to and three tasks that will be more like challenging.  Try to think of one way you could tackle each item on the challenging list with a more positive attitude.  Lord, help us to see the challenges facing us today as scenarios you will be walking through with us and as opportunities to do our best.  May we not be found just enduring life but may we tackle our tasks with all our might and with your help.

“Even a live dog is better than a dead lion.”

Ecclesiastes 9: 4

We start the ninth chapter of Ecclesiastes today and the writer, “the Teacher, whom many think is King Solomon, son of King David, seems to be stepping back for focus.  What has he discovered as he has applied his wisdom to understand life?  It would seem logical that the “good guys” should be rewarded for their goodness and the “bad guys” should suffer trouble.  That’s the way we think God should act and it would be a good indicator of knowing we are doing life right.  But God’s sun shines on the good and the bad.  The righteous suffer with the foolish and the foolish may well be successful in their folly.  There is a kind of underlying equality that unsettles us.  We cannot guarantee tomorrow.  Not only can we not guarantee tomorrow, we will all die eventually.  He concludes with a proverb, “even a live dog is better than a dead lion.”

As Americans, we might think of a dog as some cute little house pet that is loved, fed, and trained.  I suspect the Teacher was thinking of dogs who at that time were more scavengers, the ones that licked the wounds of Lazarus who sat begging for scraps at the gate of the rich man.  Lions on the other hand were symbols of  regal authority.  We think of lions as “king of the jungle.”  Even the concrete jungle.  The Teacher decides that, “anyone who is among the living has hope. v.4”. And as far as he knew, death was the end of the road and the end of hope.  All the lion had worked for will be evaluated by history but the dog can hope that its life will change.  Perhaps someone will throw it a scap.

So what does hope mean to us?  That is a great question right now as we debrief the Presidential debates from last week and as we celebrate July 4th this week, reflect on history, and ponder the freedom people fought for.  What is the hope that sustains you during rough times?  See if you can put some flesh on it with an acrostic.

H is for _____

O is for _____

P is for _____

E is for _____

Romans 5: 3-5 shares,   “3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings,because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the “Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”  Lord, help us persevere in hard times that we might develop character and be filled with hope.