<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"></head><body ><div>Forwarded:</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div style="font-size:8px;color:#575757">From my Android phone on T-Mobile. The first nationwide 4G network.</div></div><br><br>-------- Original message --------<br>From: Judy <judy_boli@ecunet.org> <br>Date:09/17/2016 6:48 PM (GMT-05:00) <br>To: Propertalk <propertalk.topic@ecunet.org> <br>Subject: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Proper 20C <br><br><div dir="ltr"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Dear Friends,</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">This Sunday’s sermon is entitled “May Your Heart Be
Broken by the Things that Break the Heart of God” (Dr. Bob Pierce*) and deals
with the Gospel (Luke 16:1-13).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here it
is: </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">On Dec. 20, 2015, I told you one of my favorite stories about my Ecunet
friend who was working for Meals on Wheels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She had a four-year-old daughter who was just at that delightful age
when kids cheerfully accept all sorts of make-believe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Occasionally, my friend would take her
daughter on her afternoon rounds to cheer up her clients. The little girl was
unfailingly intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly the
canes, walkers and wheelchairs. One day my friend noticed that her daughter was
staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass. As she braced herself for
the inevitable barrage of questions, the child merely turned and whispered,
“The tooth fairy will never believe this!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s how most people feel when they hear this parable in which Jesus
praises the dishonest manager.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How could
he?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s look at the parable in greater
detail so it makes sense to us.</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Jesus tells the story of a person who worked for a rich man and did a
really incompetent job of managing his property.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the owner discovered what was happening,
he fired the manager, who made some really shady deals to cover his own
financial skin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We heard how reduced the
amount owed by each of his debtors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
person who owed 100 jugs of olive oil had his debt reduced to fifty jugs, and
the person who owed 100 containers of wheat had his debt reduced to 50
containers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The manager did this to
build good will and possible retirement money for himself, since he lost his
job.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s in this rather strange
parable for us as we try to faithfully live our lives today?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lots- two life lessons and one caution.</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Times New Roman">LIFE LESSON #1: As the dishonest manager was totally committed to
ensuring enough money for his retirement, so God expects us to be totally
committed to ensuring gain for the kingdom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Our culture expects us to be cool, restrained about religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the worst things our culture can say
about someone is that he or she is a “religious fanatic,” yet that is exactly
what God expects us to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the
dishonest manager was passionately committed to his own gain, so Jesus expects
us to be passionately committed to him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></font></font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">LIFE LESSON #2: As the dishonest manager recognized the seriousness of
the situation and thought outside the box, so God expects the same from us- but
for the growth of God’s Kingdom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If
there is a task God wants you or St.
Paul’s to accomplish, never look at it and say that it
can’t be done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, do what the
dishonest manager did and figure out how to do it. </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">CAUTION: Many of us are care deeply about
something (or many things), but they are the wrong things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember Jesus’ reminder: “You cannot serve
God and money” (Luke 16:13b).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Money and
material things make wonderful tools for the Lord, but terrible masters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we put God first in our lives,
everything else flows into place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anything else in the center makes our lives as confused and devastated
as the city of Saginaw
with all this violence.</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Do you remember the story of
the ten-year-old boy was failing math?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His parents tried everything from tutors to hypnosis, but to no avail.
Finally, at the insistence of a family friend, they decided to enroll their son
in a private Catholic school. After the first day, the boy's parents were
surprised when he walked in after school with a stern, focused and very
determined expression on his face, and went right past them straight to his
room, where he quietly closed the door. For nearly two hours he toiled away in
his room - with math books strewn about his desk and the surrounding floor. He
emerged long enough to eat, and after quickly cleaning his plate, went straight
back to his room, closed the door, and worked feverishly at his studies until
bedtime. This pattern continued ceaselessly until it was time for the first
quarter report card. The boy walked in with his report card -- unopened -- laid
it on the dinner table and went straight to his room. Cautiously, his mother
opened it, and to her amazement, she saw a bright red "A" under the
subject of MATH. Overjoyed, she
and her husband rushed into their son's room, thrilled at his remarkable
progress. "Was it the nuns that did it?," the father asked. The boy
only shook his head and said, "No." "Was it the one-on-one
tutoring? The peer-mentoring?" "No." "The textbooks? The
teachers? The curriculum?" "Nope," said the son. "On that
first day, when I walked in the front door and saw that guy they nailed to the
'plus sign,' I just knew they meant business!"<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(jokeswarehouse.com)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why did I close with this story?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because it illustrates the point of the
parable- take God and God’s Kingdom seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Just as the dishonest manager did- think outside the box.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be creative in doing God’s work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stay focused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Put time and energy into God’s work. “God so loved the world that he
gave his only begotten Son.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He showed
how much He cares.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How about you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Show you care.</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">(*Dr. Bob Pierce- the
founder of World Vision)</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes; tab-stops: .25in;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes; tab-stops: .25in;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">For anyone who is
interested, this sermon and updated African-American wisdom statements are
posted on our parish’s web site under “Sermons & Stuff”. The address is: </font><a href="http://www.stpaulsepisag.org/"><u><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman">http://www.stpaulsepisag.org</font></u></a><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> .</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Blessed preaching,</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Judy Boli</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">St. Paul's Episcopal Church</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Saginaw, Michigan</font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font></div>
<p></p>
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