<html><body bgcolor="#FFFFFF"><div><br><br><br>Begin forwarded message:<br><br></div><blockquote type="cite"><div><b>From:</b> Judy <<a href="mailto:judy_boli@ecunet.org">judy_boli@ecunet.org</a>><br><b>Date:</b> January 29, 2011 10:42:09 PM EST<br><b>To:</b> Propertalk <<a href="mailto:propertalk.topic@ecunet.org">propertalk.topic@ecunet.org</a>><br><b>Subject:</b> <b>[propertalk.topic] Sermon for Epiphany 4A</b><br><b>Reply-To:</b> <a href="mailto:propertalk.topic@ecunet.org"><a href="mailto:propertalk.topic@ecunet.org">propertalk.topic@ecunet.org</a></a><br><br></div></blockquote><div></div><blockquote type="cite"><div><span>Dear Friends,</span><br><span>“God’s Way to Happiness” or “Not Like an Oscar-Mayer Wiener!” and</span><br><span>deals with the epistle (Matthew 5: 1-12). Here it is:</span><br><span></span><br><span>We just heard Jesus tell how to have a blessed life, which is another</span><br><span>way to say “a happy life.” We’d all like a happy life. What would</span><br><span>make you happy? (Listen to a few responses.) Let me tell you about a</span><br><span>man who had the chance to get anything he wanted. This is a story I’m</span><br><span>repeating from July, 2003. See if you can remember how it ends.</span><br><span>Before we start, does anyone know the commercial “I Wish I Was an</span><br><span>Oscar Mayer Weiner?” How does it go? (Get responses.) Well, here’s</span><br><span>the story. A man was walking along the beach when he came across this</span><br><span>very old oil lamp. The man started to rub it to remove all the ocean</span><br><span>crud when "poof" a genie appeared. This genie, like all genies, was</span><br><span>so happy to be freed of the lamp that he granted the man three</span><br><span>wishes... "I wish to be the richest man in the world,” the man said.</span><br><span>"Man," the genie replied, "It has already happened.” The man’s wallet</span><br><span>would hardly fit in his pocket because of all the thousand dollar</span><br><span>bills. “Wait until you get your bank statement!” said the genie. You</span><br><span>won’t know what to do with all that money!” What's your second</span><br><span>wish?" "Genie”, said the man, “I want a CAR! In fact, I want the</span><br><span>most expensive Porsche convertible made: Fire engine red, on board GPS</span><br><span>and the finest audio system ever installed in an automobile."</span><br><span>"That’ll work," said the genie. He waved his hand and the finest car</span><br><span>anybody had ever seen popped out of the lamp. The genie then asked the</span><br><span>man for his third wish. He thought and thought, since he really</span><br><span>wanted to choose wisely. After all, this was his last wish, so it had</span><br><span>to be a good one. Finally he said, “Genie, I can't think of anything</span><br><span>now. May I save the third wish for later?" "My, that’s unusual,</span><br><span>responded the genie, but of course you may wait. Just call me when</span><br><span>you're ready." With that, whoosh, the genie disappeared. The man</span><br><span>leapt into his fire engine red Porsche convertible, turned on the</span><br><span>radio with the great audio system and pulled onto the highway. He had</span><br><span>the top down, so the wind was whistling through his hair, the sun was</span><br><span>shining, not another car was on the road, and he was HAPPY- in fact so</span><br><span>happy that he began to sing along with the great music on his great</span><br><span>radio. Up came a commercial, and he continued to sing the old</span><br><span>familiar tune: “Oh, I wish I was an Oscar-Mayer Wiener...." Whoosh-</span><br><span>what a wish!</span><br><span></span><br><span>A wishing lamp with a genie really won’t make us happy, but God’s way</span><br><span>will. Let’s look at the Beatitudes in the bulletin one by one to see</span><br><span>God’s way: 3 “God blesses those people who depend only on him. They</span><br><span>belong to the kingdom of heaven!” If you think about it, who or what</span><br><span>else can you really depend on that will never let you down?</span><br><span></span><br><span>4: “God blesses those people who grieve. They will find comfort!”</span><br><span>Here, we’re talking about those whose hearts are broken by the things</span><br><span>that break the heart of God. Are you so in touch with our Lord that</span><br><span>human pain, misery, injustice, cruelty, ignorance break your heart?</span><br><span>Practice putting yourself in other’s shoes, so you know how they</span><br><span>feel. Then do something about their pain.</span><br><span></span><br><span>5: “God blesses those people who are humble. The earth will belong to</span><br><span>them!” You know what this means- be humble- be reality-oriented.</span><br><span>Live in a real world. Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not. Don’t</span><br><span>pretend to know something you don’t know. Acknowledge your talents-</span><br><span>they’re from God; compensate for your weaknesses- don’t hide them. In</span><br><span>other words- know your spiritual gifts and then develop them.</span><br><span></span><br><span>6: “God blesses those people who want to obey him more than to eat or</span><br><span>drink. They will be given what they want!” This is the beatitude</span><br><span>that really can get to many of us, because we really like to eat.</span><br><span>Anybody else like that- you can tell what time it is by what our</span><br><span>stomach is saying? God needs to come even before food and drink.</span><br><span>Don’t be a "convenience Christian"- someone who comes to church if it</span><br><span>isn’t too hot, too cold, too early, too late, too inconvenient because</span><br><span>they need to cook, they were up late and need to sleep, etc. Put God</span><br><span>first if you truly want to be happy.</span><br><span></span><br><span>7: “God blesses those people who are merciful. They will be treated</span><br><span>with mercy!” Here’s “what goes around comes around.” Don’t expect</span><br><span>God to forgive you if you refuse to forgive your enemy</span><br><span></span><br><span>8: “God blesses those people whose hearts are pure. They will see</span><br><span>him!” What’s the opposite of pure? Think in terms of food? The</span><br><span>opposite of pure is poisoned. What poisons the human heart?</span><br><span>Bitterness, anger, jealousy- all those negatives. Once we realize</span><br><span>this, it’s easy to see why a poisoned heart can’t see God- they’d</span><br><span>never recognize him- not in a neighbor, not in the Bible or in Holy</span><br><span>Communion, not even in a miracle. Why? They’d be too busy</span><br><span>criticizing the neighbor, the Bible, the church service, and they’d</span><br><span>think the miracle was an accident!</span><br><span></span><br><span>9: “God blesses those people who make peace. They will be called his</span><br><span>children!” Nothing to say here- love (in other words- want what’s</span><br><span>best for) your enemy.</span><br><span></span><br><span>10: “God blesses those people who are treated badly for doing right.</span><br><span>They belong to the kingdom of heaven.” Somebody, perhaps the Rev. Dr.</span><br><span>Tony Evans, says- “Those who stand for nothing will fall for</span><br><span>anything.” You know what’s right- live it. Doing so may not be easy,</span><br><span>may not make you popular, but you’ll have a clear conscience; you’ll</span><br><span>be able to sleep at night. Have the courage to stand up for what you</span><br><span>know is right.</span><br><span></span><br><span>If you do all these things, what’s in it for you? Day by day, a</span><br><span>better life. In closing, listen to the words Mahatma Gandhi (one of</span><br><span>Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s mentors):</span><br><span>“Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words.</span><br><span> Keep your words positive because your words become your behaviors.</span><br><span> Keep your behaviors positive because your behaviors become your</span><br><span>habits.</span><br><span> Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values.</span><br><span> Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny.”</span><br><span></span><br><span>For anyone who is interested, this sermon and updated African-American</span><br><span>wisdom statements are posted on our NEW PARISH WEB SITE. The address</span><br><span>is: <a href="http://www.stpaulsepisag.com">http://www.stpaulsepisag.com</a> .</span><br><span></span><br><span>Blessed preaching.</span><br><span>Judy Boli</span><br><span>St. Paul's Episcopal Church</span><br><span>Saginaw, Michigan</span><br></div></blockquote></body></html>