John Hougen, Elkins Park, PA

Warm-up Question

What are your ambitions? Name three: one ambition you have for this week, one ambition you have for this year, and one ambition you dream of fulfilling in your lifetime.

Ambition

All of us have ambitions: goals we are working toward, hopes for the future, dreams of success. Our ambitions can be good or evil, noble or crass. Ambition can lead to addressing the root causes of violence and building a better community. And, ambition can lead predators to boast of how many victims they’ve lured into bed. Ambitions can express our best selves or something less. They can contribute to the common good or fulfill our most shameful selfish desires. I knew two families who seemed to be in competition for which would adopt the most children with special needs. I admired them greatly.

In American culture today, competition is everywhere. Ambition is defined as wanting to win, to come out on top, to be the best. Children vie for their parents’ attention. Families plan everything else around youth sports schedules. Network television seems dominated by series that start with auditions and end with a winner. We each have our teams, our candidates, our favorite competitors. When we aren’t competing ourselves, we are cheering for those with whom we identify. When our side wins, we feel like we have won too. They are in the limelight and we bask in their glory.

It is a challenge for those of us who are spiritual to align our ambitions with the values of our faith. It may be harmless to indulge in the competitive games people play, but if we are true to our faith, our focus will be elsewhere. As Christians, our ambition should be to imitate Christ who revealed the God-given potential of life in this world. This does not mean we should aspire to wearing robes and performing miracles. It means we should open our minds and hearts to becoming aware of God’s presence with and within us. It means we should use our brains, muscles, and empathy to help others. It means our ambitions will include seeking and speaking the truth, offering and accepting forgiveness, peace-making, befriending the marginalized, binding up what is broken, and mending creation.

Discussion Questions

• Why do you think there are so many television shows which feature competition (such as American Idol, The Voice, and America’s Got Talent)?  If you watch any of these, what is their attraction to you?  What attributes do these shows reward?
• Would you like to be famous? If so, what do you dream of doing that would command attention and earn the admiration of others?
• Name people with ambition whom you admire, and tell why you admire them. Include some examples from your family and friends.
• Will any of your ambitions lead you toward being more like Jesus? If so, which ones? If not, why not?

Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

James and John were ambitious. Their ambition was to be like Jesus: to be close to God and able to pray, to speak God’s truth, heal, forgive, inspire, and lead. They knew they would never be exactly like Jesus, so the next best thing was to stay as close to him as possible. They believed that one day God would establish a great kingdom with Jesus seated on its glorious throne. In both the present and future, they wanted to be by Jesus’ side, one on his right and one on his left. So, they asked Jesus to grant them their wish. James and John hoped that when glory came to Jesus, they would be nearby, soaking up the glory that comes to a winner.

Jesus responded to their request with a question. “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink?” We can know what Jesus meant in that moment by turning a few pages ahead in the Gospel of Mark. Mark 14 reports that on the night before Jesus’ crucifixion, kneeling in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed: “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want.” (Mark 14:36. NRSV) When Jesus asked James and John, “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink?” Jesus was asking whether they understood glory was not going to happen just yet. He was asking them whether, on the way to glory, they were willing to suffer and die as he would. Would they be willing to be tortured and killed for being like Jesus, eliminated when those in power would no longer put up with truth and love?

The other disciples, surely as deserving of glory as James and John, objected to their trying to claim the honor for themselves, “cutting in line” to get the best seats. Jesus then told all his disciples they were acting like politicians whose ambition for power and fame is motivated by the desire to enrich themselves and bolster their own egos. The politicians of their day (and some in our day) wanted power so they could force others to abide by their selfish whims rather than using their power for good.

Jesus teaches his disciples (and us) that those who are his most faithful followers will lose what their culture considers essential for a successful life: the ambition to gain fame, riches, power, and glory. Jesus teaches his disciples (and us) that his most faithful followers will be like him–ambitious for greatness in service, gaining the success that comes from giving away all they are and all they have to make life better for others.

Discussion Questions

• Do you think Jesus was too hard on James and John for wanting to be with him in glory?
• Is it possible to have ambition for fame or wealth and still be most focused on serving others?
• If you were to sacrifice time, energy, and money to help others, what would you gain? What would make your sacrifices worthwhile?

Activity Suggestions

There are many passages in the Bible that encourage Christians to use the gifts God has given them for the sake of others. (Read one of the following: Matthew 5: 14-16, Romans 12: 3-8, 1 Corinthians 12: 1-11) If you are meeting in a group, let each person have a turn while others in the group identify the gifts God has given her or him and how those gifts are being used or could be used to serve others. If you are by yourself, list your gifts and how they might be used to help others.

Closing Prayer

I wrote the following text to be sung at a gathering of Lutheran college and university students. Some of the lines are inspired by Scripture passages such as today’s Gospel reading which invites us to follow Jesus, and to become his presence in the world today. Other lines are inspired by passages such as Matthew 25: 34-40 which teach us that when we serve others, we are serving Jesus who is present with them in their need.

Meditate on these words in silence or by finding a simple melody to which they can be sung.

1. We are free to be – like Jesus.

We are free to be: Jesus in the world.

2. We are free to see – like Jesus.

We are free to see: Jesus in the world.

3. We are free to serve – like Jesus.

We are free to serve: Jesus in the world.

4. We are free to love – like Jesus.

We are free to love: Jesus in the world.

5. We are free to heal – like Jesus.

We are free to heal: Jesus in the world.

6. God has set us free – like Jesus.

God calls us to be: Jesus in the world.

Amy Martinell, Sioux Falls, SD

Warm-up Question

What would you do if you want millions of dollars in the lottery?

Valuing Things and People

On September 28th an earthquake and tsunami rocked Indonesia.  The 7.5-magnitude quake struck just off the central island of Sulawesi, setting off a tsunami that engulfed the coastal city of Palu. The death toll has now risen to 1,347( as of October 2nd) and there is fear there are still more people trapped underneath the mud and rubble.

In the midst of this horrible situation, there is little running water, power, food, or drinking water. People are desperate as they try to meet their family’s basic needs and looting has become a problem.  At first, officers were lenient to those taking basic goods, but people have now been arrested for stealing computers and cash.  Police report they find themselves in a difficult situation as they try to protect the stores but still provide the people with what they desperately need.   Looters have also hindered relief efforts as survivors have blocked trucks carrying supplies to raid the contents.  Relief trucks are now being escorted by soldiers and the police.

For more information:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-45716915

https://www.npr.org/2018/10/01/653268266/indonesian-tsunami-death-toll-hits-1-200-survivors-desperate-for-aid

Discussion Questions

• How do you feel when you hear of a natural disaster that is so far away from us? Helpless?  Removed?  Eager to find a way to help?
• Mr. Rogers recommended looking for the helpers in scary and desperate situations. Where do you see people helping the survivors in Indonesia?
• As people struggle to survive, is there a moral line they shouldn’t cross? Is looting okay when it is to meet basic needs?  What about when the supplies are going to help others?   Have there been time in your own life when you have had to resort to “desperate measures for desperate times.”

Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

“Sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me…How hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

This is a hard story to hear.  Jesus tells us our wealth and possessions can stand between us and eternal life.  The solution is to give away all we have, something that doesn’t sound too appealing to most of us. Often, to make ourselves feel better, we reassure ourselves we aren’t the people Jesus is talking about.  We aren’t wealthy; we don’t have that much stuff.  Yet, when we see reports of the earthquake survivors in Indonesia struggling just to meet their basic needs we are reminded of how much we have.

Jesus warns us about wealth because it can insulate us from others and from God.  When we are able to meet all of our own needs we don’t reach out to others for help.  We may forget to live as a community where members care for and support each other.  We can value the things we have more than the people around us.

We do hear a word of hope: What is impossible for us mortals is not impossible for God.  Even our wealth, our possessions, and our greed cannot separate from God’s love.

Whether it is money and possessions or activities and friends, we often put other things before God, but this text challenges us to remember that Jesus wants to be the center of our life and we are called to share what we have with those in need.

Discussion Questions

• Do you think wealth separates us from other people? From God?  What separates you from God in your life of faith?
• We don’t hear what happens to the young man after he goes away from Jesus in mourning, what do you think he does next.
• Share a time when your generosity helped others. When someone’s generosity helped you.
• Do you think the amount of money we have can affect how we follow Jesus?

Activity Suggestions

• Plan a fundraiser to help the earthquake victims in Indonesia or a local charity you would like to help.
• Use play-do to make a model of something that you are tempted to put ahead of Jesus.  Maybe your cell phone, homework, or sports.  Pray for forgiveness and than smash that false idol.  Discuss together ways you can keep faith at the center of your life.

Closing Prayer

Gracious God, we know that so much separates us from you: our actions, our possessions, our wealth.  Forgive us for all the times we put ourselves and our needs above others and above You. Give us glad and generous hearts to serve you and help our neighbors. Amen.

John Wertz, Blacksburg, VA

Warm-up Question

Have you ever attended or participated in a wedding?  Which elements of the wedding were the most memorable?

Taking Marriage Seriously

Have you ever heard someone say, “50% of all marriages end in divorce?”  While that statement is frequently made in discussions about marriage and relationships, the research today on marriage suggests that this widely accepted statement isn’t true.  According to University of Maryland sociology professor Philip Cohen, divorce rates have dropped by 8% from 2008 to 2016 driven primarily by a declining divorce rate among millennials (those born between 1981 and 1996).

“The change among young people is particularly striking,” Susan Brown, a sociology professor at Bowling Green State University, said of Cohen’s results. “The characteristics of young married couples today signal a sustained decline [in divorce rates] in the coming years.”

In fact, according to a study from the Centers for Disease Control, between 2006–2010, the probability of a first marriage lasting at least 10 years was 68% for women and 70% for men. While broken relationships and divorce are still a painful part of life in the world, statistics suggest that for those choosing to get married in 2018, the chance of divorce is far lower than it was 40 years ago.

Discussion Questions

• Statistics and data can be interpreted in a variety of ways. How often to you factcheck statements you see online like “50% of all marriages end in divorce”?  What sources of information do trust?
• Are you surprised to hear that divorce rates are declining among millennials? Why or why not?

Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

After hearing Jesus teaching in Mark 10:2-16, it’s safe to say that Jesus isn’t afraid to address controversial topics.  Instead of giving a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer to the question of the legality of divorce, Jesus uses the question to offer a much broader teaching which addresses the brokenness and sin in the world and reminds us of God’s desire for people to live in healthy relationship with one another.

Whenever the word ‘divorce’ enters into a conversation, particularly a religious conversation, some people are instantly transported to a place of personal pain or strong emotions.  Some people will no doubt hear Jesus’ words as a condemnation of their actions while others will hear his words as support for their personal beliefs.  Jesus’ conversation with the disciples and Pharisees, however, is less focused on answering the Pharisees’ question and more focused on lifting up God’s desire for God’s people to live in a healthy, lasting relationship with one another.

Look carefully at how Jesus responds to the question posed by the Pharisees.  They ask, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”  Instead of answering ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ Jesus acknowledges the tradition and current practice and then expands the conversation to a discussion of a healthy relationships.  Divorce, the official ending of a relationship, Jesus acknowledged, was permitted by Moses, because of the hardness of the human heart.  In a perfect world, once two people are joined together in marriage, nothing would be able to separate them, but sadly, we know that some relationships are irreparably harmed by the choices individuals make.  Because of the sinfulness and brokenness that exists in our imperfect world, divorce happens. It happened in Jesus’ time and it happens today, but divorce it is not the desired outcome of a relationship.

God’s desire is that God’s people will live in healthy relationship with one another.  God’s desire is that when two people choose to marry then nothing will be able to divide them.  God’s desire is that God’s people would know the joy of having healthy, loving relationships in their lives.  By not simply answering ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to the Pharisees’ question about divorce, Jesus invites us to recognize the complexity of human relationships and to consider not simply what is legal, but how we can participate in the whole, healthy life that God desires for all God’s people.

Discussion Questions

• Share the characteristics or practices you feel contribute to a good marriage or healthy relationship.
• Divorce is a painful and difficult experience for many people. How could you share God’s love and support with someone whose parents are divorcing?
• Where do you go to find answers to the difficult questions you face in life? How might scripture or faith help you find answers to those questions?

Activity Suggestions

Interview a couple that has been married for 40 years or more.  Ask them to teach you the characteristics of a good marriage/relationship.

Identify and share with your group memes or emojis that might be shared in a healthy, loving relationship.

Closing Prayer

Abundant God, your love for us is unbreakable.  Give strength and support to those dealing with the pain of divorce and help us all to build whole, healthy relationships in our lives.  May your love for us be reflected in the way we treat others.  Amen.

Jocelyn Breeland, Sunnyvale, CA

Warm-up Question

What is your congregation or community doing to help the poor?

Priority of the Poor

In 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) launched the Poor People’s Campaign, a multiracial effort to address the causes of poverty in America and achieve economic justice. Dr. King was in Memphis, Tennessee to support the sanitation workers strike – a major element of the campaign – when he was assassinated in April of that year.

The campaign continued after his death, advocating an Economic Bill of Rights, eventually erecting Resurrection City, a shantytown where thousands of people lived on the National Mall in Washington, DC while demanding economic justice. Resurrection City lasted six weeks. The campaign did not achieve adoption of the Economic Bill of Rights, but did result in some lesser victories such as additional funds for free and reduced school lunch programs and Head Start.

Fifty years later, Rev. William J. Barber and Rev. Liz Theoharis have launched a new nationwide effort called The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival. (You can learn more by visiting their website here.) The new campaign’s website calls out the “distorted moral narrative” that perpetuates systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, and militarism.

Earlier this year, the campaign held rallies and organized groups of supporters in communities across the country, believing that many of the solutions can be achieved locally. More recently, the campaign has added a focus on voter registration. The founders are committed to non-violent action to finally achieve Dr. King’s vision. Like the original, this new campaign is a multi-faith, multi-racial effort.

Discussion Questions

• King, Barber and Theoharis are all ministers. Do you believe it is appropriate for religious leaders to engage in local and national politics?
• What does your faith suggest can or should be done to end poverty and economic injustice?
• Our nation’s leaders have historically been overwhelmingly Christian. According to the Pew Research Center, more members of the current Congress consider themselves Christian (91%) than do American’s as a whole (71% of US adults). Serving the poor is such an important part of Jesus’ ministry, why do you think it is so difficult for Christians to make more progress on alleviating poverty?
• Can Christians disagree about how to solve the problems of the poor and still remain faithful?

Nineteenth Sunday After Pentecost

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

The disciples were surely special people. They were chosen with care to provide important support to Jesus’ ministry, and were essential to spreading the gospel after his ascension. Today’s scripture suggests that, at times, they are a little too impressed by just how special they are. In verses 33-37, the disciples confess they’ve been discussing who among them is the greatest.

Jesus calls the disciples to focus on what’s really important – doing the Lord’s work. And he reminds them that others, even some unlikely individuals, have a part in God’s plan. Casting out demons in Jesus’ name will be rewarded, even if you’re not a follower.

He also warns that even followers can commit errors that cause them and others – like children – to go astray. But it’s not just children who can stumble, and Jesus goes on to encourage the disciples to be ruthless in rooting out anything in their own lives that might distract them from fulfilling God’s purpose.

The language is harsh, but it’s balanced by a message of comfort. Because it’s clear that a necessary part of doing the Lord’s work is caring for his people (v. 41), it is a particular joy to be part of a Christian community where we are blessed to offer and receive support and comfort in Jesus’ name.

Discussion Questions

• What are some modern equivalents of those who cast out demons in Jesus’ name, but are not followers?
• If even those who do not follow Jesus will receive their reward, what is the value of belonging to the community of followers? Are we special?
• Hand. Foot. Eye. Why do you think Jesus chose these particular body parts?
• What does Jesus’ caution mean to you? What are some of the ways a hand, foot, eye – or something else – might cause you to fall?

Activity Suggestions

Today’s Gospel is a warning about the ways our bodies, and other parts of our lives, can distract us from God’s plan and lead us astray. Now, though, focus on ways these same things can be part of serving our divine purpose:

• List a hand, foot and eye in your life and, for each, list a way you can use it to act on your faith in the next week.
• Share this list with the group.
• Next week, begin your time together by sharing the results of putting these plans into action.

Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank you every day for this community of faith. Help us always to share your love with each other, and as important, with those outside our community. Deliver us from evil, Lord, and make us ever diligent so that our hands, feet and eyes do not lead us astray, but are instruments we use to serve you. We delight to do you will; in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Bob Chell, Sioux Falls, SD

 Warm-up Question

Talk about a time you saw someone in a group you were part of exercise leadership in a surprising and positive way.

Failing Up

In a post on the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) website, Colleen Wearn ponders whether we are raising a generation of students who are tremendously accomplished but terrified of failure.  In contrast to orchestrating student’s success from day one (and thus making it difficult for them to deal with failure down the line), she suggests that we would do better to encourage students to adopt a mindset around the paradigm of “try, fail, repeat.”  She says, “We need to let go of the urge to ensure their success, and instead create more opportunities for them to take on real challenges, with real possibility of failure.”

NOLS trains leaders along this model. It’s interesting that this non- religious group is utilizing the leadership method Jesus advocates when he says, “the last shall be first” or “pick up your cross and follow me.”

Discussion Questions

• If you were a part of this hike how would you feel about the NOLS leader when you arrived at the Swedish border? How about when you arrived at camp at midnight?
• How do you know when to let people fail when you are a leader?
• When has failing taught you a great life lesson?

Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

What does it mean to follow Jesus, to take seriously what he says about taking up a cross, loving one’s neighbor, being the servant of all? This is the question Christians have been asking since the beginning.

The early Christians were a squabbling group of folks! As they struggled to determine and discern just what it meant to follow Jesus: Did men need to be circumcised?  Could Christians eat pork or were they to keep Kosher and follow the Jewish dietary laws? Could Gentiles, non-Jews become Christ followers?

The book of Acts, which tells the story of the early church, is pretty much one big dysfunctional church fight. In its earliest days Christians sometimes worried more  about who’s in the kingdom and who’s out of the kingdom than what it means to follow Jesus day by day.

That’s not much different than today, when Christians argue among themselves about whether we should be baptized as children,  what faith says about sexuality and gender issues, when life begins, who can be a pastor, or which political candidate aligns with Christian values.

Focusing on these questions or the behavior of other’s allows us to avoid the things Jesus asked us to do; exhibit leadership by service to others.  It is easy to focus on sin,  particularly somebody else’s, when the sad truth is that none of us have done it all right. Jesus told the disciples they must lose their lives to find them and pick up their cross to follow him.

Now, having just heard that, the disciples are squabbling about who’s best. It isn’t until the end of the gospel story, when Jesus is crucified and then raised from the dead, that the disciples begin to understand what Jesus was telling them all along.

What they thought was the end was really the beginning. They finally began to understand who Jesus was, who they were, and what they were to do with the rest of their lives.

This is a place we know—when the bottom has dropped out, when our lives are a mess, when our faith is wavering and our hope is diminishing. From the first birthday party we weren’t invited to, through Mom and Dad’s arguing voices as we tried to go to sleep, to our own fears and failures in relationships, the classroom, and other competitions.  We’ve all experienced the deep pain of failure, whether it was our parent’s divorce, humiliation in athletic competition or failing grades.

Sometimes what we perceive as terrible endings are really new beginnings. Not wonderful beginnings, or exciting beginnings. In the news story for today the new beginning was born out of deep exhaustion. For the disciples it meant persecution and even death.

Jesus didn’t ask his disciples to quit sinning but to follow him.  He asks the same of us.

It isn’t a failing grade, defeat or divorce which prevent us moving forward. It’s the grief and guilt, the anger and resentment, the what ifs and the woulda, coulda, shoulda questions that lead us into despair.

Jesus is much more interested in what lies in your future than your past. And he promises to walk with you every step of the way, to meet you at the border when you’re five miles deep into the wrong direction.  And when our life’s journey is over we’ll learn again that what we perceive as an ending is actually the great beginning of what God has in store for us.

Discussion Questions

• Can you think of someone in the Bible who failed before they succeeded?
• Tell about a time you witnessed someone leading by serving.
• Can you think of anyone in the Bible who did not fail before they succeeded?
• What does it mean to you, and to your life, that it’s so much easier to find examples of failed leaders in the Bible?

Activity Suggestions

Think about a time in your life from the past when you were depressed or despondent. Did God meet you there? How did you get through that time? Was God part of the healing? If so, how? Share a part of your story with others in the group if you want to.

Talk, as a group, about why it is so difficult to discern God’s presence in our lives in those places we are currently struggling. Is this normal?

What does faith look like when our world is falling apart?

Closing Prayer

God, you know our deepest fears, our great regrets and how lost we sometimes feel. Help us to feel your presence in our hearts and not just in our heads. Fill us with your Holy Spirit. Give us confidence and courage when we are lost and guide us through the pain back to your promises. We pray in Jesus name.  Amen.