Before we get started today, I need you to make notes on the answer to three questions. We will then file the answers away and use them later in the lesson.
I want you to think of someone whom you regard as an enemy … or someone that you dislike strongly.
I want you to think of someone whom you regard as disgusting or perhaps just irritating.
I want you to think of a group or class of people that you don’ t like or don’t trust or are uncomfortable with. {Examples: mathematicians, people over 70, Chinese people, …}
We are going to take a look at a book today that Tony and Amy might want to use for some of the lessons over the summer, the book Parables from the Back Side by Ellsworth Kalas. The Biblical materials involved are the parables of Jesus. That in itself should make the lessons rich. However, in each parable Ellsworth Kalas tries to find a new perspective that can make it possible for the parable to speak to us in new and fresh ways.
Please turn to Luke 10:25-37 and read the parable of the Good Samaritan. This parable is an old friend that you have heard many times. However, it is so important that I often wonder if we should not read it every Sunday in worship, perhaps immediately after we say the Lord’s Prayer together.
Some notes from Kalas on this parable:
· As with most parables, this one was told in the give and take of conversation. In conversation with a group of people, Jesus answers the question of the lawyer.
· A “lawyer” in first century Israel was a theologian. The issue was not how to avoid arrest … but how to live the good life … how to obey the law as given in the first five books of the old testament
· The lawyer digested the law into two pieces: Love God, love your neighbor. This answer was not unique to him. This summary comes from verses in the book of Deuteronomy and these scriptures were probably in a small leather pouch that the lawyer, as a good Jew, wore on his person.
· Lawyer saw the wisdom of the answer, but he wanted to cut the requirements of the law down to manageable size. We can love some people without too much efforts, so the law will be much easier to manage if we restrict the definition of neighbor to just those people … or perhaps just those people and a few more.
· Discussion: How does this parable answer the lawyer’s question?
From the class members present: The parable extends the definition of neighbor to include all racial groups and religious groups and voided the significance of partitions by rank, social standing, and caste.
At this point, I think we have had a profound lesson. Each of us needs to be reminded daily of the truth that the parable holds.
Kalas’ twist: How did the good Jewish man who was mugged feel about being helped by the Samaritan, someone whom he had studiously avoided all of his life?
In order to help us get into the question that Kalas asks, Ed has rewritten the Parable of the Good Samaritan. In the midst of the retelling, you will find three blank spaces. Please refer to the answers you gave to the three questions a the beginning of class. Read Ed’s retelling three times, each time inserting one of the three names into all the blanks in the retelling.
Ed’s Retelling of the Good Samaritan:
I was hurrying though Forsythe Park one evening as twilight fell, and suddenly rough hands grabbed me. Before I could resist I had been struck on the head, I had been pummeled, my face had been beaten and slashed with a knife, my clothes had been half torn from me, my billfold/purse had been taken, and I had been half pushed into a big azalea bush. As I lay there half conscious, I would have chuckled except my broken ribs hurt too much. I looked for all the world like a drunk who had passed out in a public place or woman of the street who had been manhandled by a lover.
But then out of the corner of my eye, I saw Pastor John coming, walking briskly through the park. I tried to call out but my tongue was thick with pain and blood from the broken teeth, and he seemed not to hear. At least, he sped up and slid to the far side of the sidewalk. It seemed hours later, but then I saw a familiar tall, skinny frame. It was old Ed, good old Ed. I surely was glad I had been in Sunday School the last few weeks. “Ed, Ed, I gurgled.” But Ed’s eyes looked frightened, and he kept his face forward, and he walked on past. Then I passed out.
Gentle hands were turning me over. A handkerchief was wiping blood from my face, and drops of water from a Dasani bottle were dribbled on my lips. Only after I had been loaded in the ambulance, did I realize that ________________ was sitting beside me in the ambulance. __________ patted my shoulder and said, “I found you in pretty bad shape. You are ok now. We will have you to the hospital in a minute.” I passed out again but when I awoke in the bed in the hospital, it was ____________ who was sitting beside me. “I have called and left messages on the answering machine at home and I am sure your family will join you soon. But even if they don’t get the message tonight, I will stay until through the night. If you need anything, let me know and I will work with nurse to get what you need.”
How did this exercise feel? Did you learn anything new about the parable by rereading it in the first person, using the names from our exercise at the beginning of class?
Kalas tells of running out of gas in a declining part of Cleveland and having to push his car to the curb. A man sees his difficulty and rushes out of the front door of a building whose faded signage reads, “Exotic Dancing till 2:00 am. Hot babes dance Topless, Bottomless and with Abandon.” The man, the proprietor of this establishment, proceeded to place a hose in his own gas tank, siphon gasoline out of the tank (including getting a mouthful of foul gasoline in the process), put the gas in Kalas’ tank, and then sent him on his way, refusing any attempt to pay.
As Kalas drove away, Kalas wondered why the person who helped him couldn’t have been someone with a bumper sticker that read, “Honk if you love Jesus” or a board member of the YMCA rushing to a meeting. Why did it have to be the proprietor of a “girlie” bar?
Kalas’ comment: I am sure that God has warm and gentle sense of humor. He so often sends blessings into our lives through unlikely channels, folks whom we would prefer to fence out of our lives and our experiences. And in that way, he will teach us, reluctant students that we are, that our definitions of our neighbors are surely not big enough.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Newsletter, May 18, 2008
Report on Class Meeting: The Families and Friends Class indulged themselves in good food and then did good work as they planned for Ed and Claire’s departure. Several important decisions were made including:
Decision 1: We will have a June social event on the evening of June 14. Details are not yet known, but it will involve eating out and feting the “old folks.” Robin is available to supervise childcare. Please let Kristen Maynard [921-7688 (home) or 657-3634 (cell)] know how many children will need childcare. This event will serve as the June/July social event.
Decision 2: The class will continue to welcome newly baptized children into the Christian community with a letter and a children’s Bible. Janet Everly leads this ministry. [Lois and John presently have 8-9 Bibles that they will donate for class use].
Decision 3: We will not regard Interfaith Hospitality Network as a class outreach. However, we will encourage individual class members to support this ministry as they are able. For the new members of the class, the following information might be useful.
· Interfaith Hospitality Network is an outreach to homeless families
· WBUMC makes its facilities available once every 6-10 weeks for to up to three families who have no place to live. We rotate this responsibility with several other churches.
· Volunteers are needed each evening of the weeklong visit in two shifts.
· Shift One: 5:30 –8:00. Help serve dinner, eat dinner with guests, play with children and/or help with homework as needed.
· Shift Two: 8:00 pm – 7:00 am: Volunteers sleep at church. No specific responsibilities other than problem solve if problems arise.
Decision 4: Although class organization may evolve over time, for the next several months the class will be organized into two leadership directions.
Community Building Leadership:
Class Preparation Leadership:
Decision 5 (The big one!!!):
Part (a): For the foreseeable future (at least the next six months) Carla and David McCorvey will provide leadership in community building efforts. They will invite class members and class attendees to join them in making the class a welcoming place for all who come, providing periodic social events for the class [and families and friends broadly defined], and supporting mission outreach as opportunities arise.
Part (b): For the foreseeable future (at least the next six months), Amy and Tony Murphy will provide leadership in the delivery of class on Sunday mornings. They will invite class members to join them in choosing teaching materials, teaching multi-week units, and listening to the class for issues and needs that need to be addressed by lessons.
Part (c): The rest of the class will join in these two major tasks. As we talked about teaching responsibilities, a number of people nodded that they would be glad to give it a try. Perhaps even more importantly, class members were cognizant that “creating a warm and welcoming place for both frequent attenders and walk-in guests” is a priority to which all contribute … even those with only a few weeks of attendance under their belts.
Other Issues 1: Teaching for the next four Sundays is mapped out as follows.
May 25: Ed
June 1: Ed
June 8: Janet and Mitch
June 15: Ed
By June 15, we will try to have curriculum chosen to carry us through the summer. After June 15 Amy and Tony will begin their “Interim Teaching Supervisor” responsibilities. They will certainly teach some, but with summer travels they will need to hear from those of you who would be willing to share in their responsibilities. [Hawkeye Ed was taking notes of those whose heads bobbed up and down during the teaching conversation and will pass this info to A and T. However, in case Hawkeye missed a bob, it would be good for you to tell A and T yourselves.]
Other Issues 2: Amy had previously committed to teaching in a children’s class this Fall, but will need to take a pass in view of her joint “Interim Teaching Supervisor” role. If you are not comfortable teaching in the Family and Friends class or if you have a special heart for children, you might consider this role this Fall.
Decision 1: We will have a June social event on the evening of June 14. Details are not yet known, but it will involve eating out and feting the “old folks.” Robin is available to supervise childcare. Please let Kristen Maynard [921-7688 (home) or 657-3634 (cell)] know how many children will need childcare. This event will serve as the June/July social event.
Decision 2: The class will continue to welcome newly baptized children into the Christian community with a letter and a children’s Bible. Janet Everly leads this ministry. [Lois and John presently have 8-9 Bibles that they will donate for class use].
Decision 3: We will not regard Interfaith Hospitality Network as a class outreach. However, we will encourage individual class members to support this ministry as they are able. For the new members of the class, the following information might be useful.
· Interfaith Hospitality Network is an outreach to homeless families
· WBUMC makes its facilities available once every 6-10 weeks for to up to three families who have no place to live. We rotate this responsibility with several other churches.
· Volunteers are needed each evening of the weeklong visit in two shifts.
· Shift One: 5:30 –8:00. Help serve dinner, eat dinner with guests, play with children and/or help with homework as needed.
· Shift Two: 8:00 pm – 7:00 am: Volunteers sleep at church. No specific responsibilities other than problem solve if problems arise.
Decision 4: Although class organization may evolve over time, for the next several months the class will be organized into two leadership directions.
Community Building Leadership:
Class Preparation Leadership:
Decision 5 (The big one!!!):
Part (a): For the foreseeable future (at least the next six months) Carla and David McCorvey will provide leadership in community building efforts. They will invite class members and class attendees to join them in making the class a welcoming place for all who come, providing periodic social events for the class [and families and friends broadly defined], and supporting mission outreach as opportunities arise.
Part (b): For the foreseeable future (at least the next six months), Amy and Tony Murphy will provide leadership in the delivery of class on Sunday mornings. They will invite class members to join them in choosing teaching materials, teaching multi-week units, and listening to the class for issues and needs that need to be addressed by lessons.
Part (c): The rest of the class will join in these two major tasks. As we talked about teaching responsibilities, a number of people nodded that they would be glad to give it a try. Perhaps even more importantly, class members were cognizant that “creating a warm and welcoming place for both frequent attenders and walk-in guests” is a priority to which all contribute … even those with only a few weeks of attendance under their belts.
Other Issues 1: Teaching for the next four Sundays is mapped out as follows.
May 25: Ed
June 1: Ed
June 8: Janet and Mitch
June 15: Ed
By June 15, we will try to have curriculum chosen to carry us through the summer. After June 15 Amy and Tony will begin their “Interim Teaching Supervisor” responsibilities. They will certainly teach some, but with summer travels they will need to hear from those of you who would be willing to share in their responsibilities. [Hawkeye Ed was taking notes of those whose heads bobbed up and down during the teaching conversation and will pass this info to A and T. However, in case Hawkeye missed a bob, it would be good for you to tell A and T yourselves.]
Other Issues 2: Amy had previously committed to teaching in a children’s class this Fall, but will need to take a pass in view of her joint “Interim Teaching Supervisor” role. If you are not comfortable teaching in the Family and Friends class or if you have a special heart for children, you might consider this role this Fall.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Stress of Change
Read the Abram story: Genesis 12:1-5
Today’s lesson is about change and the stress that accompanies change. As Christians we should know a lot about how to deal with that stress, because the Bible records the lives of people who found themselves immersed in change:
Abram (Abraham) … who left his home to go to a new land
Joseph who moved from favored son to slave to prisoner to potentate
Moses … who was tending sheep and was called by God to lead his people to freedom
David … who was tending sheep and was called by God to go into battle
Mary who was an innocent adolescent … and learned she was to bear God’s son
Joseph who learned that his betrothed was pregnant
Peter who moved from fisherman to fisher of men
Paul who was abruptly moved from chasing Christians to creating Christians
And the list goes on and on
Among the things that the Bible reveals about change is that sometimes astonishingly positive things come from change and the stress that accompanies it. Look again at the list of Biblical characters and what resulted from the change in their lives:
Abraham: A new nation was created that ultimately blessed the world with Jesus.
Moses: His people moved to freedom.
Mary: is honored as the mother of the savior of the world.
Peter: birthed a new church and nurtured it in difficult years.
Change has within it the seeds of good.
· It often calls forth from us growth and creativity and reveals to us new challenges and new opportunities.
· It has the potential to move us closer to God.
But despite the potential positives of change, we remain very ambivalent about it:
Bumper Sticker (put up board): Change is good, you go first.
For most of us, change can be good as long as it happens to someone else … and as long as it does not interrupt our agenda
Now, we have talked about biblical changes … but let’s brainstorm about the changes that characterize our lives: [work on board]
· Life cycle changes
· Vocational Changes
· Relationship changes (engagement, marriage, divorce, parenting, caring for aging parents, …)
· Health changes
· Cultural changes
· Financial changes
· Residential changes
Activity: I want to return to an activity that is parallel to activity that we did last week. Suppose that you were counseling a friend who is immersed in or facing great change. What advice would you give him or her for managing the change … and overcoming the stress of the change:
Here are some ideas on advice from the class discussion:
· To make peace with change we may have to reorder our priorities. To do so may involve not being selfish.
· The stress of change is temporary. We will reach equilibrium. The result may be better than the past, but it will certainly be different.
· Change is inevitable but in the midst of all change, we know that we are not alone … and we are loved
· Even in the midst of negative change, God will help us find good
· Pray and ask God to help us see the good things
· Even when change has laid us low, God helps us see that other people need us and this gives us strength to get up and start again
At this time, I need to take our conversation in a different direction. I need to discuss some major changes in the life that Claire and I share that will create some smaller changes in the life of this class. I want to talk about some pulls and pushes that have been working on our lives over the last 18 months that are resulting in change in our lives.
· A major change occurred some 14 months ago when Claire and I became grandparents. This created a magnet in Decatur, Georgia that has exerted a strong pull on the two of us … and a particularly strong pull on Claire.
· Another change has been occurring over time. My parents, who are 85 and 83, have remained in remarkably good health, but become more frail in body and mind as time passes. As we think about the need to respond to their needs, the seven hours between Birmingham and Savannah loom very large. This has created another pull on the Wheeler family.
· Still another change occurred two years ago when I was helped hire a new boss. Last week Tony talked about some of the perils of being in management … and there are many. But one peril of a manager is that he or she is very dependent on the relationship he has with boss the next level up. Though I have maintained remarkably good relationship with my new boss, we do have different priorities and different styles that some time cause dismay. Further, she is building a completely new leadership team, and though she has been gracious enough to include a place for me, it is not a place where I am completely comfortable. I have experienced these events as a push.
· About a month ago I received a call from a little two year college located just south of Atlanta, asking if I would be interested in serving a year as academic officer at that school. As I laid awake thinking about this call and as I prayed about this call, it seemed to be the right next step in our lives. I will be leaving in a month to move to that area, and Claire will follow as she is able to wrap up her practice.
As we prepare to leave, there is just one heartache that we cannot calm.
We have loved our work in Savannah, but we will find good work elsewhere
We have loved our house in Savannah, but we will trade grandchild for a house any day
We have loved living on the coast, but it will be good to be nearer mountains
The heartache that remains, however, is that we will miss you. We have enjoyed being in this Christian community, the community in this class, more than any Christian community in our adult lives. We are so very grateful you have shared this part of our life with us.
Today’s lesson is about change and the stress that accompanies change. As Christians we should know a lot about how to deal with that stress, because the Bible records the lives of people who found themselves immersed in change:
Abram (Abraham) … who left his home to go to a new land
Joseph who moved from favored son to slave to prisoner to potentate
Moses … who was tending sheep and was called by God to lead his people to freedom
David … who was tending sheep and was called by God to go into battle
Mary who was an innocent adolescent … and learned she was to bear God’s son
Joseph who learned that his betrothed was pregnant
Peter who moved from fisherman to fisher of men
Paul who was abruptly moved from chasing Christians to creating Christians
And the list goes on and on
Among the things that the Bible reveals about change is that sometimes astonishingly positive things come from change and the stress that accompanies it. Look again at the list of Biblical characters and what resulted from the change in their lives:
Abraham: A new nation was created that ultimately blessed the world with Jesus.
Moses: His people moved to freedom.
Mary: is honored as the mother of the savior of the world.
Peter: birthed a new church and nurtured it in difficult years.
Change has within it the seeds of good.
· It often calls forth from us growth and creativity and reveals to us new challenges and new opportunities.
· It has the potential to move us closer to God.
But despite the potential positives of change, we remain very ambivalent about it:
Bumper Sticker (put up board): Change is good, you go first.
For most of us, change can be good as long as it happens to someone else … and as long as it does not interrupt our agenda
Now, we have talked about biblical changes … but let’s brainstorm about the changes that characterize our lives: [work on board]
· Life cycle changes
· Vocational Changes
· Relationship changes (engagement, marriage, divorce, parenting, caring for aging parents, …)
· Health changes
· Cultural changes
· Financial changes
· Residential changes
Activity: I want to return to an activity that is parallel to activity that we did last week. Suppose that you were counseling a friend who is immersed in or facing great change. What advice would you give him or her for managing the change … and overcoming the stress of the change:
Here are some ideas on advice from the class discussion:
· To make peace with change we may have to reorder our priorities. To do so may involve not being selfish.
· The stress of change is temporary. We will reach equilibrium. The result may be better than the past, but it will certainly be different.
· Change is inevitable but in the midst of all change, we know that we are not alone … and we are loved
· Even in the midst of negative change, God will help us find good
· Pray and ask God to help us see the good things
· Even when change has laid us low, God helps us see that other people need us and this gives us strength to get up and start again
At this time, I need to take our conversation in a different direction. I need to discuss some major changes in the life that Claire and I share that will create some smaller changes in the life of this class. I want to talk about some pulls and pushes that have been working on our lives over the last 18 months that are resulting in change in our lives.
· A major change occurred some 14 months ago when Claire and I became grandparents. This created a magnet in Decatur, Georgia that has exerted a strong pull on the two of us … and a particularly strong pull on Claire.
· Another change has been occurring over time. My parents, who are 85 and 83, have remained in remarkably good health, but become more frail in body and mind as time passes. As we think about the need to respond to their needs, the seven hours between Birmingham and Savannah loom very large. This has created another pull on the Wheeler family.
· Still another change occurred two years ago when I was helped hire a new boss. Last week Tony talked about some of the perils of being in management … and there are many. But one peril of a manager is that he or she is very dependent on the relationship he has with boss the next level up. Though I have maintained remarkably good relationship with my new boss, we do have different priorities and different styles that some time cause dismay. Further, she is building a completely new leadership team, and though she has been gracious enough to include a place for me, it is not a place where I am completely comfortable. I have experienced these events as a push.
· About a month ago I received a call from a little two year college located just south of Atlanta, asking if I would be interested in serving a year as academic officer at that school. As I laid awake thinking about this call and as I prayed about this call, it seemed to be the right next step in our lives. I will be leaving in a month to move to that area, and Claire will follow as she is able to wrap up her practice.
As we prepare to leave, there is just one heartache that we cannot calm.
We have loved our work in Savannah, but we will find good work elsewhere
We have loved our house in Savannah, but we will trade grandchild for a house any day
We have loved living on the coast, but it will be good to be nearer mountains
The heartache that remains, however, is that we will miss you. We have enjoyed being in this Christian community, the community in this class, more than any Christian community in our adult lives. We are so very grateful you have shared this part of our life with us.
Monday, May 5, 2008
Stress of Discontent
Ice Breaker:
Life would be sweet if I was driving a _____________________
I surely would not mind swapping places with ________________ for a week.
This somewhat silly exercise reminds us that we all have aspirations that are not being met in the present. This is both normal and expected. However, sometimes we become so invested and focused on what we don’t have that we lose the joy of the present. This “out-of-control” discontent can fill our lives with stress and sour our relationships with all those around us.
The Stress of Unfulfilled Expectations: The Stress of Discontent
In-Class Exercise: Please read the following scriptures. Do any of them speak to you in a powerful way about the nature of contentment … and how to find it?
Scriptures
Philippians 4:10-13: I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Hebrews 13: 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.
I Timothy 6: 6 – 8: But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
Psalm 63: 1 – 3: O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you, my body longs for your in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your live is better than life, my lips will glorify you.
2 Corinthians 4: 7 - 8: But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
Philippians 3:7-8: But whatever ws to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus m Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him.
Matthew 6: 19-21: Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. … For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
In the outline below, I provide you with a summary of the didactic on discontent from the text. Please review and prepare comments that you are willing to share with the class on how these observations dovetail with your experiences.
Read and Respond:
Contentment is not complacency
· Contentment does not mean we don’t pursue goals and seek change
· Contentment does not mean that you don’t have a preference
Contentment allows for disappointment:
· Paul, 2 Corinthians 4:8: We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed, perplexed, but not in despair.
· In the midst of contentment we can be disappointed and we can grieve
· However, contentment does mean we are not mobilized by despair
Contentment does not dwell on comparisons: What I have versus what I should have.
Contentment does not dwell on comparisons: What I have now versus what I once had.
Contentment does not dwell on comparisons: What I have versus what others have.
Contentment does not depend upon circumstances
Contentment is the fruit of perspective
· Phillipians 1:20, 2: 16-17
· Phillipians 3:20
· Phillipians 3:7-8
· Phillipians 1:15-18
Contentment is learned behavior
The text provides a summary in terms of these Life Change Lessons:
· Make a list of unfulfilled goals and accept disappointment … but do not slip into despair. [Being content is not pretending that everything is the way you wish it would be, it is not acting as though you have no wishes. Rather, it is no longer being ruled by your desires. (John Eldredge)]
· Make a list of new goals based on current circumstances.
· Celebrate the special people, places, and moments in your life.
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