Lasting Impressions
Sermon
No Particular Place to Go
Sermons For Sundays After Pentecost (Middle Third)
During his first visit to the United States, Albert Schweitzer found himself at Pennsylvania Station in New York City, waiting for a train that would take him, his wife, and some friends to Colorado. It was the first time he had seen an immense American railroad station, and there was much to do and look at while they waited. Then Schweitzer saw a broom and, in the middle of the big crowded place, quietly began to sweep up the rubbish on the ground. After a little while he realized that in the meantime the crowd had thrown down more trash. Without getting angry or criticizing others, Schweitzer continued sweeping until the time of his departure.
People at Pennsylvania Station that day probably did not even notice the man sweeping and picking up trash. Apparently no one recognized him as one of the most brilliant persons in the world at the time. On another occasion Schweitzer shared his personal philosophy of life, "Only a person who can find value in every sort of activity, and can devote himself to each one with full consciousness of duty, has the inward right to undertake some out-of-the-ordinary activity instead of that which falls naturally to his lot."
Albert Schweitzer is remembered as a human being of great integrity who, even though he was brilliant, showed concern for others. In an age where role models are hard to find, we need positive examples of people who have lived their life with the utmost integrity.
The wise author of the Proverbs stated that, "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches." According to Cervantes Proverbs are "short sentences founded upon long experience containing a truth." The assertion is that good conduct will strengthen the society in which we live while bad conduct erodes and weakens humanity. Good conduct is in harmony with God's purpose while bad conduct is living in discord without God.
We can picture the wise teacher, having lived a long life teaching young students some of the lessons he learned in life. The wise teacher wanted to pass on his lifetime of learning to future generations so they might avoid the traps he fell into. Instead of pursuing riches every waking moment of your life the wise teacher says that there is something more important, and that is a good name or reputation. A good name, correspondingly, "is better than silver or gold."
In his quest the wise teacher learned that the first discovery is that God created the world and everything in it. That breakthrough led the wise teacher to seek to live in harmony with God. To have a good name is to live in harmony with our neighbors. Such integrity requires going beyond what might normally be expected of us by continuing to show our concern for other people. It means never being too preoccupied to help someone in need or to pick up a broom. Instead of thinking too highly of ourselves and looking down on others, we should treat them with kindness and respect. There is a common thread between people who come from different backgrounds or life experiences. "The rich and the poor have this in common: the Lord is the maker of them all." We are all children of a loving God, so any human differences really do not matter after all. If we take the time to look closely enough we can find divine attributes in every person. We were all created out of the same material.
The wise teacher wanted his students to remember that there are always consequences to our actions. We might think that what we do when no one is watching is not of great importance. After all, we might argue that we are our own persons; we do not need anyone telling us what we should or should not do. Yet our actions do have a rippling effect: what we do influences another and another. It is for that reason that the wise teacher claimed, "Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity and the rod of anger will fall." The truth is that when we do something wrong eventually it will come out into the open, and in the process other people will suffer or be hurt as a result of our actions. We erroneously think that no one will ever know of our indiscretion, so we might be tempted to continue. Even if no other person ever finds out what we have done, God knows. "Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity." It's that simple.
In contrast to the person living out of harmony with God is the person seeking to pursue a life of integrity by being generous to others. According to the wise teacher, "Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor." When we show love and concern for other people, people less fortunate than ourselves, God promises that we will be blessed. It is a good feeling knowing that we have done the right thing in a given situation.
"We were talking casually," recalls Sudha Khristmukti of India, "when what was uppermost on my friend's mind suddenly slipped into the conversation." Sudha's friend shared that she and her husband were paying high interest rates on a house loan. They were financially struggling with two children in school. They did not know how they could possibly make it. Sudha asked how much money they needed. The amount was the exact amount that Sudha had managed to save in a bank account. "Not a penny less, not a penny more." Then Sudha remembered how it took three years to save the modest amount. "Could I give that money away?" Sudha wondered.
That night sleep was difficult as Sudha wrestled with what to do. "I thought of all the times God's grace and loving-kindness had touched and encouraged me," Sudha reflected. "How could I not reach out to this family now?" she wondered. The next morning the decision was made. The struggling family was astonished at the generosity shown them. Sudha emphasized that they could return the money only when and if they could afford to do so. There was no pressure on them to return the money.
"I thank God for the chance to show my gratitude for all God has provided for me," Sudha says of the experience. "Each of us has the opportunity to show our gratitude by giving our time, talents, and support to help others." What an example and witness for others! She was someone who learned that a good name and reputation was of greater worth than silver or gold.
Since both the rich and poor have something in common, "the Lord is the maker of them all," it would be possible at some later time to find their positions reversed. Rich persons could suddenly find themselves in dire straits while the person with less could suddenly inherit a windfall. When people of more means help out someone less fortunate than themselves, they hope that if they were ever in need that someone would help them.
Persons of greater means likewise should not take unfair advantage of other persons. The wise teacher professed, "Do not rob the poor because they are poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord pleads their cause and despoils of life those who despoil them." God is on the side of the down and out. The person seeking to live in harmony with God will not take from those who have less. Persons with more clout are able to use the legal system to their own advantage, oppressing or taking advantage of the poor for their own gain. The warning is clear since God is on the side of the encumbered.
John Croyle was an outstanding football player in college, having played for the University of Alabama. John played in three bowl games and was offered a lucrative professional football contract, but he turned it down. Instead of playing professional football and earning a large salary, he started a home for boys.
"I was in McDonalds," John explains, "when this guy pulled his boy by the ear and was hurting him." John felt he had to do something to help the young boy. So John went up to the man and said, "Mister, you want to see how that feels?" The man immediately let go of his son's ear.
Since John was nineteen-years-old he was concerned for the well-being of young children. John met a boy from the streets of New Orleans whose mother was a prostitute. The little boy was his mother's cash collector as well as time keeper. John became friends with the boy and shared with him how he could become a Christian. The boy became a Christian and Jesus Christ changed his life. "That's when I knew we needed a home for boys," John proudly states. Several years later John met a young girl in trouble and felt led to open a home for girls as well.
"They are not bad kids," John explains. "It's just that they had been taught some things that weren't correct." Being in a more friendly environment where these children experience love, many for the first time in their lives, transforms them. John tells the children, "Now look, you've been told your whole life that you can't do this, and you can't do that, and you're bad. You're a no-account. You're a sorry person. That's not true. God don't make no junk and God doesn't make garbage and you are not a mistake."
"Over the years I've put together the staff and raised the money to create children's homes in Arkansas, Georgia, two in Tennessee, and one in Colorado. It started with one, but there were too many hurting kids for one home. We just had to start more." John Croyle has helped over 1,200 children since he started.1
Blessing does not come as a reward to the person who acts kindly toward others. Rather generosity and concern for others is its own reward as John Croyle discovered in his own life. Living a life full of integrity in harmony with God is its own reward. "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold." Living in harmony with God, caring for others comes naturally and gives us that long sought after sense of peace of mind.
____________
1. Robert Schuller, Power Thoughts, (New York: HarperCollinsPublishers, 1993), pp. 152-154.
People at Pennsylvania Station that day probably did not even notice the man sweeping and picking up trash. Apparently no one recognized him as one of the most brilliant persons in the world at the time. On another occasion Schweitzer shared his personal philosophy of life, "Only a person who can find value in every sort of activity, and can devote himself to each one with full consciousness of duty, has the inward right to undertake some out-of-the-ordinary activity instead of that which falls naturally to his lot."
Albert Schweitzer is remembered as a human being of great integrity who, even though he was brilliant, showed concern for others. In an age where role models are hard to find, we need positive examples of people who have lived their life with the utmost integrity.
The wise author of the Proverbs stated that, "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches." According to Cervantes Proverbs are "short sentences founded upon long experience containing a truth." The assertion is that good conduct will strengthen the society in which we live while bad conduct erodes and weakens humanity. Good conduct is in harmony with God's purpose while bad conduct is living in discord without God.
We can picture the wise teacher, having lived a long life teaching young students some of the lessons he learned in life. The wise teacher wanted to pass on his lifetime of learning to future generations so they might avoid the traps he fell into. Instead of pursuing riches every waking moment of your life the wise teacher says that there is something more important, and that is a good name or reputation. A good name, correspondingly, "is better than silver or gold."
In his quest the wise teacher learned that the first discovery is that God created the world and everything in it. That breakthrough led the wise teacher to seek to live in harmony with God. To have a good name is to live in harmony with our neighbors. Such integrity requires going beyond what might normally be expected of us by continuing to show our concern for other people. It means never being too preoccupied to help someone in need or to pick up a broom. Instead of thinking too highly of ourselves and looking down on others, we should treat them with kindness and respect. There is a common thread between people who come from different backgrounds or life experiences. "The rich and the poor have this in common: the Lord is the maker of them all." We are all children of a loving God, so any human differences really do not matter after all. If we take the time to look closely enough we can find divine attributes in every person. We were all created out of the same material.
The wise teacher wanted his students to remember that there are always consequences to our actions. We might think that what we do when no one is watching is not of great importance. After all, we might argue that we are our own persons; we do not need anyone telling us what we should or should not do. Yet our actions do have a rippling effect: what we do influences another and another. It is for that reason that the wise teacher claimed, "Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity and the rod of anger will fall." The truth is that when we do something wrong eventually it will come out into the open, and in the process other people will suffer or be hurt as a result of our actions. We erroneously think that no one will ever know of our indiscretion, so we might be tempted to continue. Even if no other person ever finds out what we have done, God knows. "Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity." It's that simple.
In contrast to the person living out of harmony with God is the person seeking to pursue a life of integrity by being generous to others. According to the wise teacher, "Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor." When we show love and concern for other people, people less fortunate than ourselves, God promises that we will be blessed. It is a good feeling knowing that we have done the right thing in a given situation.
"We were talking casually," recalls Sudha Khristmukti of India, "when what was uppermost on my friend's mind suddenly slipped into the conversation." Sudha's friend shared that she and her husband were paying high interest rates on a house loan. They were financially struggling with two children in school. They did not know how they could possibly make it. Sudha asked how much money they needed. The amount was the exact amount that Sudha had managed to save in a bank account. "Not a penny less, not a penny more." Then Sudha remembered how it took three years to save the modest amount. "Could I give that money away?" Sudha wondered.
That night sleep was difficult as Sudha wrestled with what to do. "I thought of all the times God's grace and loving-kindness had touched and encouraged me," Sudha reflected. "How could I not reach out to this family now?" she wondered. The next morning the decision was made. The struggling family was astonished at the generosity shown them. Sudha emphasized that they could return the money only when and if they could afford to do so. There was no pressure on them to return the money.
"I thank God for the chance to show my gratitude for all God has provided for me," Sudha says of the experience. "Each of us has the opportunity to show our gratitude by giving our time, talents, and support to help others." What an example and witness for others! She was someone who learned that a good name and reputation was of greater worth than silver or gold.
Since both the rich and poor have something in common, "the Lord is the maker of them all," it would be possible at some later time to find their positions reversed. Rich persons could suddenly find themselves in dire straits while the person with less could suddenly inherit a windfall. When people of more means help out someone less fortunate than themselves, they hope that if they were ever in need that someone would help them.
Persons of greater means likewise should not take unfair advantage of other persons. The wise teacher professed, "Do not rob the poor because they are poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord pleads their cause and despoils of life those who despoil them." God is on the side of the down and out. The person seeking to live in harmony with God will not take from those who have less. Persons with more clout are able to use the legal system to their own advantage, oppressing or taking advantage of the poor for their own gain. The warning is clear since God is on the side of the encumbered.
John Croyle was an outstanding football player in college, having played for the University of Alabama. John played in three bowl games and was offered a lucrative professional football contract, but he turned it down. Instead of playing professional football and earning a large salary, he started a home for boys.
"I was in McDonalds," John explains, "when this guy pulled his boy by the ear and was hurting him." John felt he had to do something to help the young boy. So John went up to the man and said, "Mister, you want to see how that feels?" The man immediately let go of his son's ear.
Since John was nineteen-years-old he was concerned for the well-being of young children. John met a boy from the streets of New Orleans whose mother was a prostitute. The little boy was his mother's cash collector as well as time keeper. John became friends with the boy and shared with him how he could become a Christian. The boy became a Christian and Jesus Christ changed his life. "That's when I knew we needed a home for boys," John proudly states. Several years later John met a young girl in trouble and felt led to open a home for girls as well.
"They are not bad kids," John explains. "It's just that they had been taught some things that weren't correct." Being in a more friendly environment where these children experience love, many for the first time in their lives, transforms them. John tells the children, "Now look, you've been told your whole life that you can't do this, and you can't do that, and you're bad. You're a no-account. You're a sorry person. That's not true. God don't make no junk and God doesn't make garbage and you are not a mistake."
"Over the years I've put together the staff and raised the money to create children's homes in Arkansas, Georgia, two in Tennessee, and one in Colorado. It started with one, but there were too many hurting kids for one home. We just had to start more." John Croyle has helped over 1,200 children since he started.1
Blessing does not come as a reward to the person who acts kindly toward others. Rather generosity and concern for others is its own reward as John Croyle discovered in his own life. Living a life full of integrity in harmony with God is its own reward. "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold." Living in harmony with God, caring for others comes naturally and gives us that long sought after sense of peace of mind.
____________
1. Robert Schuller, Power Thoughts, (New York: HarperCollinsPublishers, 1993), pp. 152-154.
