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<DIV>Sermons for Proper 11: </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> Luke 10:38-42
–<STRONG> “What Jesus Saw in Martha” </STRONG></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> Luke 10:38-42 –
<STRONG>“Mary, Martha, and the Martha Stewart Church”</STRONG> by Leonard
Sweet</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT size=4
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Luke 10 - the sermon titled "What Jesus Saw in
Martha" </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style="COLOR: black">Some years ago, The Archbishop of Canterbury was
rushing to catch a train in London. In his haste, he accidentally jumped on the
wrong passenger car and found himself on a car full of inmates from a mental
hospital. They were all dressed in mental hospital clothing.<BR><BR>Just as the
train pulled out of the station, an orderly came in and began to count the
inmates, “1-2-3-4…” when suddenly he saw this distinguished looking gentleman
there wearing a business suit and a clerical collar and he said:<BR><BR>“Who are
you?” The answer came back: “I am the Archbishop of Canterbury!” And the orderly
said: “5-6-7-8.”<BR><BR>The point of that story is this: It is so important to
know who we are and who other people are. If we know what makes us tick and what
makes other people tick, we get along better. If we understand where we are
coming from and where other people are coming from, we relate better. There is
more compassion, more empathy and more kindness. When Jesus looked at Martha
that day in that emotional scene, he saw some red flags, some warning signals,
some danger signs, some destructive attitudes within her which were more harmful
to Martha herself than to anyone else. Jesus loved Martha. They were good
friends and that day, he saw in her some hurtful attitudes that were working in
her like spiritual poisons, petty attitudes, which can devastate and destroy the
soul.<BR><BR>Let’s look at these dangerous attitudes which were in Martha. We
may find ourselves or someone we know somewhere between the lines. When Jesus
looked at Martha that day, he saw deep down inside of her the dangerous attitude
of….</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style="COLOR: black">1. Resentment<BR>2. Narrowness<BR>3.
Unkindness</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The rest of this sermon following the outline
above can be obtained by joining <A title=blocked::www.eSermons.com
href="http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/admin/FCKeditor/editor/dialog/www.eSermons.com">www.eSermons.com</A>.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">_______________________</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Luke 10 - the sermon titled “Mary, Martha, and
the Martha Stewart Church” by Leonard Sweet </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">In the classic Billy Crystal movie “City
Slickers,” three long time friends face middle age. In their middle-age crisis
they find themselves losing their focus and in danger of losing their
families.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">To reignite the fire in their lives the guys
sign up as “cowboys,” helping a dude ranch move its herd of cattle from high in
the hills down to the lower valley. “Curly,” the grizzled old cowboy who leads
them, seems to be the toughest, canniest, wisest person they have ever met.
Billy Crystal asks the usually tight-lipped cowpoke what his secret is. What
makes his life so strong and centered and sure. Curly smiles, raises his
grubby, gloved index finger and proclaims, “It is just one thing,” then he rides
away.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Billy’s character spends the rest of the movie
frantically trying to figure out what Curly meant. What IS that “just one
thing?”</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Psychologists, marriage counselors,
relationship gurus of all stripes, warn us not to expect one person to provide
for all our emotional, intellectual, and relational needs. We need a variety of
relationships, a network of spouses, friends, colleagues from work, basketball
buddies, quilting club comrades, children, elders, and peers, to meet all our
relational needs.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">But what might be true for our human
connections does not hold true for our spiritual needs. Our soul needs only “one
thing.” No matter what your denomination. No matter if your spiritual
temperament is exuberant, reserved, flamboyant, or meditative. Whether your soul
craves cathedrals, or soars under the blue dome, it is all the same as long as
we have that “one thing.”</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">That “one thing” is Jesus.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">In today’s gospel text Martha, the mistress of
the house, rushes around trying to make sure everything is perfect. Martha is
like some first century Martha Stewart. She is focused on the food, the house,
the drink. Martha seems to be doing for others. At first reading Martha is just
being a conscientious hostess. But a deeper reading of the story reveals Martha
is really only concerned with herself.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">How does HER house look?</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">How does HER food taste?</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">How are HER wines being served?</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Martha is so busy “serving” she completely
forgets whom she truly serves…</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The rest of Leonard Sweet's sermon can be
obtained by joining <A title=http://www.sermons.com/
href="http://www.Sermons.com"><FONT
color=#800080>www.Sermons.com</FONT></A></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">________________________</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Don’t Forget the Best</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">There is an ancient
Scottish legend that tells the story of a shepherd boy tending a few straggling
sheep on the side of a mountain. One day as he cared for his sheep he saw at his
feet a beautiful flower -- one that was more beautiful than any he had ever seen
in his life. He knelt down upon his knees and scooped the flower in his hands
and held it close to his eyes, drinking in its beauty. As he held the flower
close to his face, suddenly he heard a noise and looked up before him. There he
saw a great stone mountain opening up right before his eyes. And as the sun
began to shine on the inside of the mountain, he saw the sprinkling of the
beautiful gems and precious metals that it contained. <BR><BR>With the flower in
his hands, he walked inside. Laying the flower down, he began to gather all the
gold and silver and precious gems in his arms. Finally with all that his arms
could carry, he turned and began to walk out of that great cavern, and suddenly
a voice said to him, "Don't forget the best." <BR><BR>Thinking that perhaps he
had overlooked some choice piece of treasure, he turned around again and picked
up additional pieces of priceless treasure. And with his arms literally
overflowing with wealth, he turned to walk back out of the great mountainous
vault. And again the voice said, "Don't forget the best." <BR><BR>But by this
time his arms were filled and he walked on outside, and all of a sudden, the
precious metals and stones turned to dust. And he looked around in time to see
the great stone mountain closing its doors again. A third time he heard the
voice, and this time the voice said, "You forgot the best. For the beautiful
flower is the key to the vault of the mountain."<BR><BR>In our Scripture passage
we have someone who also forgot the best. Her name was
Martha.<BR> <BR>Adrian Dieleman, Hosts and
Guests<BR>__________________________________________</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">Will the Grass Ever
Come Back? </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">Erma Bombeck, the
author who wrote "If Life Is A Bowl Of Cherries, What Am I Doing Here In The
Pits", tells of two moments in her husband's life:<BR><BR>There was a time when
the children were growing up that her husband used to go and look at the
back yard. Surveying the muddy patches where the lawn should be, he would
wonder -- Will the grass ever come back?<BR><BR>And then there was the time
when the children were grown and gone that her husband went and looked over the
beautiful green lawn, immaculate from lack of use and wondered -- Will the
children ever come back?<BR><BR>Some parts of life are temporary - some are
eternal. Wisdom knows the difference. This is the fundamental issue
at stake in the story of Mary and Martha.<BR><BR>Richard J. Fairchild, The
Better Part<BR>________________________________________<BR><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">Responding with
Humor</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">By the way, don't
you think Luke also included this incident in his gospel account because he
found it irresistible, or perhaps more accurately, because he found a touch of
humor in it? There is humor here, isn't there? We smile at the story because we
see ourselves in it, or we detect someone we know who is similar to Martha.
Sometimes our priorities, or frustrations, are so far off the beam that they are
laughable. And along with this was Martha's own lack of humor, which might have
finally saved her. "The Lord's coming to my house? You mean he did accept my
reckless invitation?" Martha might have asked. "Well, then, he's going to have
to settle for potluck!" Such an attitude could have made Martha a relaxed,
delightful hostess. </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">A friend of mine
likes to tell stories about how his teenage children would call him at home on
the telephone on Friday nights after the high school basketball games. It was
usually about 10 o'clock and they wanted to know whether they could bring a few
friends over for a little get together. When the parents asked how many friends
were coming, they were usually told, "Oh, about seventeen." Instead of slamming
down the phone, the guy said he always smiled at his wife, and the two of them
hightailed it over to the supermarket to get enough supplies to feed and water
down the two dozen teenagers who showed up. The slight ridiculousness of the
situation and the parents' humorous response to it preserved a loving
relationship between them and their children.<BR> <BR>Richard W. Patt, All
Stirred Up, CSS Publishing Company, Inc.
<BR>__________________________________</SPAN></DIV>
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