SermonStudio

Cast Of Characters
Jane: friend of Sara's and a similar age
Sara: friend of Jane's and a similar age


(It is Sunday morning and people are gathered drinking coffee/tea and having fellowship)

Jane: I love this church fellowship time!

Sara: Me too! I get to catch up with my friends, and have some coffee to wake up.

Jane: So, how was work this week?

Sara: It was boring as usual. How about your week?

Jane: Oh, it was great! No one's lunch got stolen this week.

Sara: Someone steals your lunches?

Jane: Yes, for about three months now. Some people have stopped bringing their lunch. What's the point if you're not going to get to eat it? Sally, one of the secretaries, tried to set a trap for the thief by putting red pepper on the outside of everyone's lunch.

Sara: Did it work?

Jane: Not exactly, because all of us ended up sneezing. It was worth a try. At this point we've tried just about everything.

Sara: I wonder why it stopped this week? Was the thief on vacation?

Jane: A good thought, but no one was on vacation. I decided to try a little honey to catch the fly, if you know what I mean.

Sara: You put honey all over everyone's food?

Jane: No, silly, I took an extra lunch for that person to eat.

Sara: How did the thief know that was his or her lunch?

Jane: I labeled it.

Sara: You wrote thief on the bag?

Jane: No, it didn't seem politically correct.

Sara: Someone's stealing your lunches for three months and you're worrying about what's PC?

Jane: Well, what if someone is starving? I mean, maybe they can't afford to buy a lunch.

Sara: Well, they must have some money because they work there.

Jane: But what if they have a lot of medical expenses? Or maybe they've hit on really hard times, like trying to pay off their school loans or something.

Sara: So, how long did it take you to come up with that explanation?

Jane: Anyway, an extra lunch a day won't kill my budget and we had such peace at the office this week. No one was running around cussing or agitated or threatening to kill the lunch stealer. It was worth it.

Sara: So, how long are you going to keep this up? And, I repeat: How did the thief know which lunch to take?

Jane: I labeled it "extra lunch." And I guess I'll keep doing it until the day that the lunch is not eaten. (Sara is stunned into silence) No comment?

Sara: I'm stunned. Give me a minute to recover. So, how come you weren't after revenge like everyone else? What happened to an eye-for-an-eye and all that stuff?

Jane: I read the New Testament. Sometimes it puts a new interpretation on things.

Sara: Say, I'm glad you brought that up. Jane, this is really important. I need to ask you a tough question.

Jane: Oh, no! Knowing you and with a set-up like that, I'm in real trouble. Is this a philosophical, hypothetical, or biblical context question?

Sara: What are you doing the rest of today after church?

Jane: That's the tough question?

Sara: Just part one. It's a multiple part question.

Jane: I'll probably read my Bible a little and then write a letter to God about my week. I'm going to relax most of the day. If God with all of his powers rested on the seventh day, then I figure I need rest too. Then maybe I'll go to a movie. How about you?

Sara: I was going to the grocery store, the drug store, and the discount outlet. There are these really cute shoes I want. But I figure that's okay, right? I'm buying food. I can't starve, right? And then I need to pick up my prescriptions. I can't do without those.

Jane: So, what category does buying cute shoes fall under?

Sara: The same category as you going to a movie?

Jane: I was afraid you would point that out.

Sara: I'm having a little trouble rationalizing the shoe part of my errands. But I figure I'm already out and ...

Jane: So, did you want my help rationalizing the errand away or is there another part to this question?

Sara: There's another part. I know how you're supposed to keep a day holy. But I thought maybe in this modern-day world we didn't really have to honor it or it doesn't apply to everyone.

Jane: I think it applies to everyone, even animals.

Sara: Or maybe there was something in the New Testament that said, don't worry about it. I mean, some people have to work in a hospital, or what about a minister.

Jane: But those people are doing good, performing a service. There is something in the New Testament that addresses that issue ... but I hope they just pick a different day to rest and keep as holy. Sara, why are you asking these questions?

Sara: Because ... I decided I was going to read my Bible a little each day this year.

Jane: That's a great idea!

Sara: But sometimes I have a hard time applying what I read to my everyday life. I mean, some of it just isn't practical.

Jane: Yes, I know what you mean. But do you really think it isn't practical, or that we choose to find a way not to follow it?

(Blackout)