Lectionary Reflections

by Various Authors

Everyone Is Looking For You!
Sermon Starter

The great architect Frank Lloyd Wright was fond of an incident 
that may have seemed insignificant at the time, but had a profound influence 
on the rest of his life. The winter he was 9, he went walking across a snow-covered 
field with his reserved, no-nonsense uncle. As the two of them reached 
the far end of the field, his uncle stopped him. He pointed out his own tracks in the snow, 
straight and true as an arrow's flight, and then young Frank's tracks meandering 
all over the field. "Notice how your tracks wander aimlessly from the fence to the cattle 
to the woods and back again," his uncle said. "And see how my tracks aim directly 
to my goal. There is an important lesson in that."

Years later the world-famous architect liked to tell how the experience had contributed 
to his philosophy in life. "I determined right then," he'd say with a twinkle in his eye, 
"not to miss the things in life, that my uncle had missed".

Frank Lloyd Wright saw in those tracks what his uncle could not: 
It is easy to let the demands of life keep us from the joys of living.

We all recognize that any goal in life worth achieving demands a great deal of our energy. 
If you are a doctor you must spend vast hours alone and in residency studying the human body. 
The life of your patient demands it. If you are a teacher you must live in the library researching 
and preparing for your lecture. The mind of your student demands it. If you are a carpenter 
you must patiently measure the building before you drive the first nail. 
The integrity of the structure depends on it. If you are a mother you must sacrifice 
your life for another. Your children require it.

We could not live if we did not set goals and work to fulfill them. 
No sane person would argue otherwise. But here's what young Wright discovered 
at the tender age of 9, and what some don't learn until 59: The objective in life 
is not the goal but the journey on the way to the goal. The whole city had gathered around the door, 
pressing in to see Jesus. The demands on him were already piling up. He cured many, 
cast out demons, and taught constantly. And his disciples didn't help matters. 
When he left in the morning early to pray, they went searching for him. 
And when they found him they said, "What are you doing, everyone is searching for you?"

How do we enjoy the journey when everyone and everything is searching for you, 
wanting a piece of you, and demanding your time?

 Hard Work Is Required.
 Do Not Let Others Define Your Goal.
 Remember to Pray!

(from http://www.sermons.com)



In my ministry - especially with those in nursing homes or shut in - 
I have emphasized that the ministry of prayer is one of the most powerful 
that one can exercise.  I do believe that anything that happens through our 'busyness' 
comes about because of the prayer strength that is behind it. 
I share an experience I had in a former pastoral charge.

We had had an election of elders.  In the United Church of Canada, 
any member may be asked to accept election, and in this pastoral charge the names 
were put forward in writing by the members.  The votes were in, and the Clerk of Session 
and myself were to visit the people 'nominated' to ask if they would accept election.

I first went to a lady who was totally bedridden - in fact, her daughter often had to feed her.  
I told her when the Clerk and myself would be visiting those elected to ask them 
if they would accept, and asked her to pray for us.

After about a couple weeks, I went back to Mrs. Archibald to report what had happened.  
When I told her that it was, apparently, the first time in the history of the pastoral charge 
that all of those elected had accepted election, she reached over her frail hand and patted mine.  
She then said, 'I rather expected they would, my dear, as that was what I was praying for.'

The 'effectiveness'; of my ministry in that place was firmly in the hands of those 
who were praying - at home, in nursing homes, etc.  And I have always depended upon 
that prayer energy, for which I give thanks to the Spirit! And now that I am retired 
(although supplying by times) I am able to spend more time doing the praying - 
or 'waiting on the Lord,' which is not visibly gratifying, but nonetheless vital, I believe.

(Comments to Marilyn MacDonald (retired) at creatpro@ns.sympatico.ca.)



All Our Strength

The story is told of a little boy and his father. They were walking along a road 
when they came across a large stone. The boy looked at the stone and thought about it a little. 
Then he asked his father, "Do you think if I use all my strength, I can move that rock?"

The father thought for a moment and said, "I think that if you use all your strength, you can do it."

That was all the little boy needed. He ran over to the rock and began to push on it. 
He pushed and he pushed, so hard did he try that little beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. 
But the rock didn't move - not an inch, not half an inch. 

After a while, the little boy sat down on the ground. His face had fallen. His whole body 
seemed to be just a lump there on the earth. "You were wrong," he told his dad. "I can't do it." 

His father walked over to him, knelt beside him, and put his arm around the boy's shoulder. 
"You can do it," he said. "You just didn't use all your strength. You didn't ask me to help." 

The world in which we live tells us that it is all up to us. It tells us that we have to be strong 
and independent. It tells us we can't and shouldn't count on anyone or anything else. 
And yet, what faith tells us and what Jews and Christians have known forever is that 
we have a ready resource in God, strength for those who ask.

(by Donald M. Tuttle)



There Is Nothing More Tempting Than a Lonely Place.

There is nothing more tempting than a lonely place. A lonely place where phones do not ring 
and loud voices all shouting at once do not compete for our attention. A lonely place 
where we can hear ourselves think, feel our own calmed breathing, rediscover the inner rhythms 
which seek in vain to regulate our lives. A lonely place where we can listen to the wind 
rippling through the trees or, perhaps, to the full and wise sound of stillness. 
A lonely place free from the cant of television and the condemnation of calendars. 
A place of tranquil rest and blessed retreat. There is nothing more tempting than a lonely place.

"And in the morning," Mark tells us, "a great while before day, Jesus rose and went out 
to a lonely place, and there he prayed" (Mark 1:35).

(by Thomas G. Long from Shepherds and Bathrobes, CSS Publishing Co., Inc.)



We Will Be Made Whole

How can you know when you have been healed? Seems like an odd question. For many, 
the answer is obvious: when the pain is gone, the fever has come down, and the disease is no more. 
But the Gospel gives a better answer. "The fever left her," we are told of Peter's mother-in-law, 
"and she began to serve them." As she was healed, she immediately began to serve others. 
When we are ready to help others in their need and focus once again outside ourselves 
we will know that we too have been cured. We will no longer be slaves to our hurts and resentments. 
We will at last be made whole. And we shall live.

(by Frank Hegedus)



Personal Prayer Time

We live in a hi-tech, fast pace, workaholic world where no one rests. We are constantly on the road, 
running errands, going places. We stuff ourselves with "fast food," overbook our lives with a myriad 
of things to do, and at the end of the day we are totally exhausted. We live (and die) by the clock. 
We are controlled by the need to produce. Time is money, time is how we keep in control of our lives. 
We resist quiet time by keeping the radios, televisions and computers on. The very thought of being alone, 
praying, scares us to death. We want professionals to do that for us. We haven't learned that relaxation 
and mediation breaks will empower us to do even greater things. Thus, we continue to be busy. 
Consequently we are on a path to self-destruction, unable to help others, let alone help ourselves.

I know that I need to build in personal prayer time, time to relax, time to "get away." 
This story has reminded me to make time for myself a high priority. But, I have also learned something
more important. The story tells us that Jesus took time away to pray and be refreshed. That is explicit. 
What we fail to see is that Jesus set aside this time to yield to the power of God. I believe we need to learn 
to yield to the power of God too. That means being free from all other distractions so that God can empower us 
and refresh us. Then and only then can we help others as the power of God flows through us.

(by Keith Wagner from Help Me, I'm Falling!)



How Clearly Can You See?

This is a story about a small seacoast village in England that routinely would become covered by dense fog. 
The pride of that village was a lighthouse that had been built on the north end of town where the harbor 
was navigable and free from the huge rocks that dotted the rest of the coast. One night the villagers had gathered 
on the south end of town to celebrate a local holiday. Part of that celebration included the building 
of a large bonfire on the beach. 

That same night, a ship in the vicinity developed engine trouble. The ship's captain, after checking his maps and charts, 
decided to locate on the beam from that village lighthouse and put in at that harbor for repairs. 
As he scanned the horizon through the fog, he caught sight of a faint glimmer of light. 
Thinking it to be the beam from the lighthouse, he set his course on it to go ashore.
 
As he came closer to land, he began to see the light more clearly and realized it was not the lighthouse but the bonfire. 
Quickly he changed course, later discovering that he had been only 100 yards away from one of the largest sunken boulders 
in that area and certain destruction of his ship. It made a difference how clearly he could see! 

How clearly can you see Jesus? What do you see? 

(by Paul E. Flesner from Sermons for Sundays in Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany, CSS Publishing Company)



Missing the Meaning of Success

When Hamilton College celebrated its centennial, one of its most famous alumni, Alexander Woolcott, 
was asked to give a major address. Horace Fenton Jr., remembers that Wolcott opened his speech in this way: 
"I send my greetings today to all my fellow alumni of Hamilton College, scattered all over the world. 
Some of you are successes, and some of you are failures--only God knows which are which!"
We don't always know success when we see it.

(by J. Ellsworth Kalas from If Experience Is Such a God Teacher Why Do I Keep Repeating The Course?, Nashville: Dimensions)



Solitude - Avoiding Burnout

The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. 
And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, 
taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in.

(by C.S. Lewis)



Solitude and Silence

A father took his small son with him to town one day to run some errands. When lunchtime arrived, 
the two of them went to a familiar diner for a sandwich. The father sat down on one of the stools at the counter 
and lifted the boy up to the seat beside him. They ordered lunch, and when the waiter brought the food, 
the father said, "Son, we'll just have a silent prayer." Dad got through praying first and waited for the boy 
to finish his prayer, but he just sat with his head bowed for an unusually long time. When he finally looked up, 
his father asked him, "What in the world were you praying about all that time?" 
With the innocence and honesty of a child, he replied, "How do I know? It was a silent prayer."

(Adapted from Our Daily Bread)



More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.

(by Alfred Lord Tennyson)



Coping with Pressure

Countless icebergs float in the frigid waters around Greenland. Some are tiny; others tower skyward. 
At times the small ones move in one direction while their gigantic counterparts go in another. 
Why is this? The small ones are pushed around by the winds blowing on the surface of the water, 
but the huge ice masses are carried along by deep ocean currents.

(Unknown)



The Coronary and Ulcer Club

The "Coronary and Ulcer Club" lists the following rules for members...

1. Your job comes first. Forget everything else.
2. Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays are fine times to be working at the office. 
There will be nobody else there to bother you.
3. Always have your briefcase with you when not at your desk. This provides an opportunity 
to review completely all the troubles and worries of the day.
4. Never say "no" to a request. Always say "yes."
5. Accept all invitations to meetings, banquets, committees, etc.
6. All forms of recreation are a waste of time.
7. Never delegate responsibility to others; carry the entire load yourself.
8. If your work calls for traveling, work all day and travel at night to keep that appointment you made 
for eight the next morning.
9. No matter how many jobs you already are doing, remember you always can take on more.