{"id":5127,"date":"2014-02-25T08:04:26","date_gmt":"2014-02-25T13:04:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/?p=5127"},"modified":"2014-02-10T14:45:26","modified_gmt":"2014-02-10T19:45:26","slug":"february-13-2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/","title":{"rendered":"March 2, 2014&#8211;Mountaintop Sacrifice"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Contributed by Jen Krausz, Bethlehem, PA<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Warm-up Question<\/h3>\n<p>Have you ever given something you really wanted to someone else? If so, how did that feel, or what happened? If not, how hard do you think it would be to give your most prized possession to someone else?<\/p>\n<h3>Mountaintop Sacrifice<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-5149\" style=\"margin: 5px\" alt=\"shutterstock_115079431edit\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" \/><\/a>When Lanny Barnes, 31, got sick with a bad cold on the weekend of the Olympic trials for the U.S. biathlon team in Italy, she couldn\u2019t compete in all the selection races and didn\u2019t qualify to make the Olympic team. Her sister, Tracy Barnes, did qualify to make the team. What happened next was a rare act of selflessness and love.<\/p>\n<p>Tracy Barnes decided to give up her spot on the Olympic team to her sister, Lanny.<\/p>\n<p>The twins had trained together, competed together and against each other, and both had dreams of being 2014 Olympic athletes, as they had both done in 2006, and Lanny had done again in 2010. Because of their ages, this Olympics is likely their last chance to compete.<\/p>\n<p>Why did Tracy decide to give up her spot? She felt Lanny deserved the position more. \u201cShe had a stellar year,\u201d she said of sister. \u201cShe just had a bit of bad luck getting sick. I would have loved the opportunity to represent my country but it meant more to me to give Lanny that chance. I think she\u2019ll do great things.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lanny was reluctant to accept her sister\u2019s sacrifice, but finally gave in to Tracy\u2019s insistent wishes. \u201cIt shows if you care enough about someone, you\u2019re willing to sacrifice everything,\u201d Lanny said. \u201cThis is her dream, what she\u2019s been talking about her entire life. It shows true Olympic spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lanny is using her sister\u2019s selfless action to motivate her even further. \u201cIt inspires me to push that much more, not only just for my country but for her as well.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>\u00a0Discussion Questions<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Olympic athletes train for many years and dedicate the majority of their lives to their sport. Knowing this, do you think you would be able to give up your last chance to make the Olympics to someone else? Why or why not?<\/li>\n<li>How would you feel if someone gave up their dream so that you could have yours? Would it be difficult to accept such a sacrifice?<\/li>\n<li>How do you think it feels to win a medal in the Olympics? How long would you want to honor or remember such an accomplishment?<\/li>\n<li>What excites or interests you most about the Olympics?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, March 2,2014<\/h3>\n<p>(Text links are to <a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/\">Oremus Bible Browser<\/a>. 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 C at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.elca.org\/Growing-In-Faith\/Worship\/Lectionary.aspx\">Lectionary Readings<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<p>For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic <a href=\"http:\/\/www.agnusday.org\/\">Agnus Day.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/?ql=259060435\">\u00a0Exodus 24:12-18<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/?ql=259060476\">2 Peter 1:16-21<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/?ql=259060503\">Matthew 17:1-9<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Gospel Reflection<\/h3>\n<p>This text is referred to as The Transfiguration because of how Jesus\u2019 appearance was changed, or transfigured. It was almost like the apostles who were with him got to see a bit of his heavenly glory. Obviously, the apostles were extremely impressed by this experience. It was an exhilarating, mountaintop moment. It may even be the event from which the term \u201cmountaintop experience\u201d originated. To see Jesus with Moses and Elijah, two giants of their history as Israelites, was deeply meaningful, something they never wanted to forget.<\/p>\n<p>The apostles with Jesus want to build a shrine or a monument to him. As we often are tempted to do, they wanted to bask in the moment, to stay right there and celebrate this wonderful spiritual high. No doubt they felt special to be among only a few chosen to see this glorious event.<\/p>\n<p>But as God often does, he interrupts their plans. He thunderously tells them where their focus should be: on following his son, Jesus. How terrifying that must have been for the apostles! So much so that Jesus has to console them when it\u2019s all over. Then, instead of building a monument, they are cautioned to \u201ctell no one.\u201d They probably felt humbled and reminded of their humanity by the stern order of first God, and then Jesus.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m convinced that God never gives us a mountaintop experience just for its own sake. No, these experiences are always meant to move us to action, to inspire us to grow in our faith and share that faith with others. Following Jesus is never about staying in one place and honoring him. Rather, it\u2019s about being his hands and feet to the needy people of the world and offering good news about forgiveness of sins that comes through him alone.<\/p>\n<h3>Discussion Questions<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What experiences have you had that you would like to hold on to or remember?<\/li>\n<li>What is your most intense experience of God\u2019s presence in your life, up to this point? How did you respond to it at the time?<\/li>\n<li>How have positive faith experiences inspired you to be Jesus\u2019 hands and feet?<\/li>\n<li>How can you tell your story and inspire others to follow Jesus?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Activity Suggestions<\/h3>\n<p>Take a few minutes to write out the story of your most intense experience of God. With your leader\u2019s help, compile the stories and make a booklet of experiences. Share the booklet with others in your church and maybe even with visitors or new members.<\/p>\n<h3>Closing Prayer<\/h3>\n<p>Dear Lord, thank you for revealing yourself to us in so many ways in our lives. Help us to use these experiences to follow you more closely as we have opportunities in our lives. May all the glory and honor be yours, Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Contributed by Jen Krausz, Bethlehem, PA &nbsp; Warm-up Question Have you ever given something you really wanted to someone else? If so, how did that feel, or what happened? If not, how hard do you think it would be to give your most prized possession to someone else? Mountaintop Sacrifice When Lanny Barnes, 31, got [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1400],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5127","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-post"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>March 2, 2014-Mountaintop Sacrifice - Faith Lens<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"March 2, 2014-Mountaintop Sacrifice - Faith Lens\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Contributed by Jen Krausz, Bethlehem, PA &nbsp; Warm-up Question Have you ever given something you really wanted to someone else? If so, how did that feel, or what happened? If not, how hard do you think it would be to give your most prized possession to someone else? Mountaintop Sacrifice When Lanny Barnes, 31, got [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Faith Lens\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-02-25T13:04:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"faithlens\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"faithlens\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"faithlens\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b8300066980f72581b618e79dbe972e7\"},\"headline\":\"March 2, 2014&#8211;Mountaintop Sacrifice\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-02-25T13:04:26+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":953,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/15\\\/2014\\\/02\\\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Post\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/\",\"name\":\"March 2, 2014-Mountaintop Sacrifice - Faith Lens\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/15\\\/2014\\\/02\\\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-02-25T13:04:26+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b8300066980f72581b618e79dbe972e7\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/15\\\/2014\\\/02\\\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/15\\\/2014\\\/02\\\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/february-13-2014\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"March 2, 2014&#8211;Mountaintop Sacrifice\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/\",\"name\":\"Faith Lens\",\"description\":\"Weekly Bible studies that engage youth and young adults in connecting world events with the Bible, faith, and everyday life.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b8300066980f72581b618e79dbe972e7\",\"name\":\"faithlens\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/53db3b51717c7bec114a3e1dd0d536804a7c8cbd5a7682c824ec5b186fe5957b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/53db3b51717c7bec114a3e1dd0d536804a7c8cbd5a7682c824ec5b186fe5957b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/53db3b51717c7bec114a3e1dd0d536804a7c8cbd5a7682c824ec5b186fe5957b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"faithlens\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.elca.org\\\/faithlens\\\/author\\\/faithlens\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"March 2, 2014-Mountaintop Sacrifice - Faith Lens","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"March 2, 2014-Mountaintop Sacrifice - Faith Lens","og_description":"Contributed by Jen Krausz, Bethlehem, PA &nbsp; Warm-up Question Have you ever given something you really wanted to someone else? If so, how did that feel, or what happened? If not, how hard do you think it would be to give your most prized possession to someone else? Mountaintop Sacrifice When Lanny Barnes, 31, got [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/","og_site_name":"Faith Lens","article_published_time":"2014-02-25T13:04:26+00:00","og_image":[{"width":200,"height":300,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"faithlens","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"faithlens","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/"},"author":{"name":"faithlens","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/#\/schema\/person\/b8300066980f72581b618e79dbe972e7"},"headline":"March 2, 2014&#8211;Mountaintop Sacrifice","datePublished":"2014-02-25T13:04:26+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/"},"wordCount":953,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg","articleSection":["Post"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/","url":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/","name":"March 2, 2014-Mountaintop Sacrifice - Faith Lens","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg","datePublished":"2014-02-25T13:04:26+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/#\/schema\/person\/b8300066980f72581b618e79dbe972e7"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2014\/02\/shutterstock_115079431edit.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/february-13-2014\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"March 2, 2014&#8211;Mountaintop Sacrifice"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/#website","url":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/","name":"Faith Lens","description":"Weekly Bible studies that engage youth and young adults in connecting world events with the Bible, faith, and everyday life.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/#\/schema\/person\/b8300066980f72581b618e79dbe972e7","name":"faithlens","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/53db3b51717c7bec114a3e1dd0d536804a7c8cbd5a7682c824ec5b186fe5957b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/53db3b51717c7bec114a3e1dd0d536804a7c8cbd5a7682c824ec5b186fe5957b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/53db3b51717c7bec114a3e1dd0d536804a7c8cbd5a7682c824ec5b186fe5957b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"faithlens"},"url":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/author\/faithlens\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5127"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5127\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5129,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5127\/revisions\/5129"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5127"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5127"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}