Building A New World

Sermon: Building A New World

John 1:43-51

January 18, 2009 Dr. Dennis Ginoza

Last Sunday, how many of you watched

the Chargers’ Steeler’s game? …It was good wasn’t it?

It was really good the first three minutes—

Chargers 7, Steelers 0 (nothing).

Last week I got a letter from a friend in Philadelphia

and he said, “Sorry about the Chargers.” Then he

said, “We folks in Philly are really pumped up!”

…The Eagles are in the play-offs.

So think about these things:

On the Chargers, wait till next year.

Football is just a game.

Life is just a game.

There are winners and there are losers.

One moment we’re up, the next moment we’re down.

When you drop the ball, pick it up and keep running.

When I was playing baseball and we made an error in

the field, our coach would say, “Just shake it off!”

Life is just a game. Everybody wants to play,

everybody want to win, so --- play hard and play fair!

When Jesus began calling his disciples Galilee, he saw Nathaniel

and he said, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is not deceit.”

Nathaniel was a good man, he was honest and clean. Sometimes

we say, “He had no dirt on him.” When Nathaniel met Jesus,

he said to him, “You are the Son of God! You are

the king of Israel!” Nathaniel was probably thinking like all

the other disciples, that Jesus was going to be the messiah

who was going to fight the Romans, but Jesus said to him,

“You will see greater things than these. …You will see

heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and

descending on the Son of Man!”

Life for all of us is paradoxical. In one moment we want the best

gadgets in the world. In the next moment, we wonder, is

life really worth living. Millions are saying, “If I only

have a job.” In the next breath, we say, “Don’t worry,

God will provide.” Did you hear about the teenager who

did 14,000 text messages in one month. That was over

400 per day. Her parents were appalled! Wasn’t the bill

over $2,000. Just two days ago, when the US Airways

jet was leaving New York City, it hit a flock of geese and the two

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Engines shut down. In an amazing fashion the pilot landed

the airbus into the Hudson River and all 155 passengers

Got out safely. Today we see it as a miracle.

Jesus comes into our world today to teach us that we are here

to build a world without deceit. He talked about power,

but it wasn’t political power or economic power. If

you have the faith of a mustard seed, and you say to

the mountain, move! It will move. Jesus was hard to

understand because he spoke in a different language.

He said, “My kingdom is not of this world.” He said,

“I am the living bread.” He wasn’t talking about bread

on the table. He was talking about soul bread: spiritual

bread.

In the time of Jesus, all around him was the grandeur of Rome.

But Rome was empty inside. This is what St. Ambrose

said about Rome:

Our whole Roman world had gone dead in its

heart because it feared tragedy, took flight from

suffering, and abhorred failure. In fear of

tragedy, we worshipped power. In fear of

suffering, we worshipped security. During

the rising splendor of our thousand years, we

had grown cruel, practical, and sterile. We did

win the whole world, but in the process, we

lost our souls.

When Thomas Jefferson was helping build our nations, he lived

by ten rules.

1. Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.

2. Never trouble another for what you can do yourself.

3. Never spend your money before you have it.

4. Never buy what you do not want, because it is cheap;

It will be dear to you.

5. Pride cost more than hunger, thirst and cold.

6. Never repent of having eaten too little.

7. Nothing is troublesome that we do willingly.

8. Don’t let the evils which have never happened cost you pain.

9. Always take things by their smooth handle.

10. When angry, count to ten before you speak. If very angry,

Count to one hundred.

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How can we build a world when we are caught in a web of

bad habits. The philosopher Plato said that passion

is like a wild horse, and it has to be tamed. The crisis

with Israel and Gaza is not just a continual bombardment

of bombs and missiles, it is a bombardment of suffering,

hate, and vengeance. When I read the book “Oh, Jerusalem,”

I began to see the problem. Israel is a land with the

shedding of blood for centuries. Until violence stops,

there can be no reason, no understanding. Until there is

civility, there can be no peace. ….So the war continues.

If we want to change the world, to make it a better place, we

just have to stop and look at ourselves. The problem is usually

us and the answer is in us. Ann Landers says, “One out of four

Americans is unbalanced. Think of your three closest friends,

if they seem okay, you’re the one.” Think about it this way:

“Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell

your parrot to the town gossip.” --Will Rogers.

All of us are walking along the edge of time. We are here just

for a time. 60, 70, 80, 90 years. Maybe 100. In the vast

universe of time, life on earth as we see it is short, isn’t

it. The book of Ecclesiastes teaches, For everything there

is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. A

time to be born and a time to die. Although we live on this

earth for just a short time, everything that we do is to prepare

for a better day; Jesus teaches us, for eternity.

Over thirty years ago, Martin Luther King said, “I have a dream.”

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day

live in a nation where there will not be judged by the color

of their skin but by the content of their character.”

“I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted,

every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough

places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be

made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,

and all flesh shall see it together.”

This Tuesday, our nation will see for the first time a black man,

an African American take on the presidency. He’s not

only African American, he comes from a white heritage,

born in Hawaii, and schooled at Harvard. Today we hope

for new bridges to be built and we hope we will make

new strides in the American character.

When Jesus saw Nathaniel, he saw the true character of a man

without deceit. This is a lesson for all of us. We need to

learn to see the uniqueness of God’s creation. A wise

teacher once gave her class an assignment. She told her

students to go out and find a small, unnoticed flower

somewhere. She told them to study that flower for a long

time. She told them to take a magnifying glass and study

the delicate veins in the leaves, and notice the nuances and

the shades of color. Turn the leaves over slowly and see

their symmetry. She said, people are like that. Each

person is different, carefully crafted, and uniquely endowed.

Take time to notice this. Many people go unnoticed and

Unappreciated, because no one has taken the time to admire

their uniqueness.

John Powell, Illustrations Unlimited

James Hewett, Editor, 1988

So today,

Let us dream dreams.

Let pursue, as Paul says,

Righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.

Yes, life is so short,

But just when we think it’s over,

Another bigger door will open.

Jesus said, “Seek first the kingdom of God.”

Where It All Started 1/11/09

SERMON: “Where It All Started”

Genesis 1:1-5, John 1:1-9

January 11, 2009 Dr. Dennis Ginoza

Can you just imagine with me for a moment:

a time when there was nothing—

No sun, no moon, no stars;

No water, no land,

No cars, no television, and no shoes, and no pizzas.

There was nothing.

This is the great mystery. Out of nothing God

created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis says:

Then God said, “Let there be light and there

and there was light and God saw that it was good.

Then God created the land and the seas,

vegetation, and every living creature and God

saw that it was good.

Then God created us—you and me,

Male and female and God blessed us, all of us

and God saw everything and it was very good.

The Interpreter’s Bible says that Genesis is not a

scientific book and it is not a historical book.

It is a religious book. It is a story of faith.

When Henry Morton Stanley was crossing the

continent of Africa, he carried with him 73 books

weighing 180 pounds. As he traveled the load

got heavier and heavier so he started to carry less

and less until he had one book left. It was the

Bible. He read the Bible through three times.

The Bible is a book of faith,

it is a book of inspiration,

it is a book of truth.

George Washington said: “It is impossible to rightly

govern the world without God and the Bible.”

President Woodrow Wilson said, “I ask every man and woman

in this audience that from this day on they will

realize that part of the destiny of America

lies in their daily perusal of this great work.”

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Will someone tell me how many hours and how many

minutes it takes to read through the Bible from

Genesis to Revelaiton at pulpit rate? Will anyone guess?

Answer: 70 hours and 40 minutes.

The book of Genesis teaches us that everything begins with

God and everything ends with God. It also tells us

that this life has been interrupted. That interruption

was a moral one. We call this the Fall, the sin of Adam.

In the year 2009 this is what I see.

The universe is made up of laws, physical

and spiritual laws, and these laws operate to bring

order, balance, and life to everything. The world of

physics, biology, and chemistry teach

us that the universe is dynamic. It is alive. Philosophy,

psychology and theology teach us that where logic and

science cannot reach, we must take a leap of faith. In

that leap of faith, we land in the hands of God. And

that’s where it all began.

Jesus helps us to see this universe in a different bent. He says

that for us to understand this world and this life, we

must become like children. Children see things as

they really are, simple, true, and fascinating.

The heart of a child takes us to the heart of God.

Listen to these letters from children.

--Dear God, instead of letting people die and having to

new ones, why don’t you keep the ones you have? --Jane

--Dear God, Maybe Abel and Cain would not kill each

other if they had their own rooms. It works with my

brother. –Larry

--Dear God, I read the Bible. What does begat mean? Nobody

will tell me. Love, Alison

--Dear God, Are you really invisible or is this a trick? --Lucy

--Dear God, I would like to live nine hundred years like

the guy in the Bible. –Love, Chris

--Dear God, I didn’t think orange went with purple until I saw

the sunset you made on Tuesday. That was cool. --Eugene

In the year 2009 this is what I see.

As little children, we all are here to discover that this

world is God’s world. That is the original blessing. But

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ourselves, this universe is a moral universe; it is a universe

of virtues.. Faith, honesty, truth, love, beauty, joy,

benevolence, purity—these are all attributes of God.

This world as we know is at war with itself. Suffering

and pain are our teachers and they are lighthouses that

help guide us to the kingdom of God. In the kingdom

there will be no more tears. Jesus is the light along the

journey. When Jesus died and was resurrected, he showed

us that in Him we break our attachment to this world—the

bond of sin and death. In Him we unite with the true

Essence of God.

We are here to set our hearts right with God. Henry G. Bosch

once wrote in Our Daily Bread about how as a little boy

he went to work with his father. Each morning he would get

up early and he and his dad would stop at a store and his dad

would buy the morning paper which he read during his coffee

break. One day his father took two newspapers by mistake.

Right away he went back to the store and paid for the second

paper. The store owner was not a Christian and Mr. Bosch didn’t

want the owner thinking he was dishonest.

During the next week, some expensive items were stolen from

that store. The police calculated that when the items were

stolen, there two men who were at the store, Mr.Bosch

and another man. The store owner told the police, “I know

Mr. Bosch is an honest man.” He told them how a week ago

he returned a newspaper he had taken by mistake. The other

man was questioned and he was arrested. We are here to set

our hearts right with God.

In the year 2009 this is what I see.

Our world today is a stockpile of material goods. It is a world

abundance. Where there is abundance there is great waste.

This is also a world of want, unfulfilled dreams, great suffering.

This is a world full of conflict, children of war, powerful men

and women caught in dishonesty, greed and power. The

economic power of Babel is falling. But our world is never

without hope. Hope is always with us. In the last eight years

we had three major fires in San Diego – 2001 2003 and 2007.

In 2001 I was sorting through the ashes with a family and

a mother quail came walking along the edge with about five of

her little quails. Hope will rise from the ashes.Paul said: ‘Hope

will not disappoint you.” Jesus said, “Lo, I will be with you

always to to end of the age.”

The Other Christmas Story, 1/4/09

MEDITATION: “The Other Christmas Story”

Matthew 2:1-12

January 4, 2008 Dr. Dennis Ginoza

The first thought I want to leave you this morning is:

everybody has a perspective.

A man discovered that 80 percent of the all accidents

occur two miles from home, so he moved.

There are only two kinds of coaches: those who have

been fired and those who gonna be. –Bum Phillips

Life is either a daring experience or nothing at all.

--Helen Keller

When I was four years old, I had a plastic toy car to play with;

I was just a happy kid.

When I was about eight years old I asked myself, am I really alive

or is this just a figment of my imagination. So I pinched

myself. Ouch!

When I was 17 in high school, an older couple was visiting

our high school. Lahainaluna High School is the oldest school

west of the Rockies: 1831. The man told me, “Young man, what a

beautiful island you have here. Travel when you’re young. Don’t wait

until you’re old like me. It’s hard to get around. (I took this to heart).

When my wife and I were in Tokyo, we were at the train station

and I noticed that someone had left a brief case at the concrete

platform. I said to her, “I’m going to turn it in.” Our host said

to me, “Don’t worry! Just leave it there. It will be there when

he gets back.” Everybody has a perspective.

Life is a time clock—we are born and we die.

Life is a school—we study, we learn, and we achieve.

Life is a test—are we naughty or good? Do we walk

a straight line or are we crooked?

Life is a book—it’s a record of all that we have done

and said and believe.

Life is a sacred journey—it is a long journey back

to God. In this journey there will be good teachers

and bad teachers.

In the gospel of Matthew, it tells about the other Christmas story.

Luke says the shepherds had already come to visit the

Christ child. In Matthew there was a star in the

East and astrologers, wise men saw it as a sign that

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a messiah was born. So the wise men set out to visit

Christ child. This story is also about Herod. Herod told the

wise men that when they found the child, let

him know because he too could worship this child.. The wise men

were warned in a dream about Herod so they left by another way. When

Herod discovered that he was tricked by the wise men, he was furious.

He ordered all the children two and younger to be killed. Joseph

was also warned in a dream that about Herod’s plan so he took Mary

and Jesus and fled to Egypt.

This Christmas story tells us about the two sides of our human character.

We we have the capacity for good and evil.

Herod’s sword is still with us, just look at the world. The birth of

Jesus is good news; in the end goodness and love will prevail.

Isaiah 11 paints this picture of the world to come.

The wolf shall live with the lamb,

The leopard shall lie down with the kid,

The calf and the lion and the fatling together,

And a little child shall lead them.

The earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord.

(Isaiah 11:6, 9)

Today we share hope for tomorrow. Just hold on five minutes

longer, things will get better.

Hear this: A (person) can live forty days without food, about

Three days without water, and eight minutes without hope.

Hope is the feeling that the feeling you have is not

Permanent. –Jean Kerr

When Osceola McCarty was 12 years old, she quit school. She did

this to help her mother with her laundry work. She saved every

penny she made and she never earned more than $10 per

bundle of dirty laundry. She helped take care of her mother,

her grandmother and her aunt. She started saving when she

was a little girl – for candy. When she was 88 years old, her

banker talked to her about when she wanted to do about the

money she had in the bank. She had $280,000 in her savings

account. She decided to give $150,000 to the University of

Southern Mississippi for a scholarship fund. This quiet

woman caught the attention of the world. She was interviewed

by Barbara Walters. Roberta Flack and Patti La Belle sang to

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her. Harvard University gave her an honorary doctorate degree.

The National Institute of Social Sciences gave her a gold medal.

She received the Presidential Award in the White House. And

she carried the Olympic Torch. All those year she lived her

faith through the Baptist Church.

When she was asked about her fears, she said,

I do have a few.

I am afraid of the dark and I am afraid of

snakes and lizards. I don’t enjoy taking fish

off the hook. But I don’t let these things keep me

from living. I am not afraid of dying. I am ready

to go anytime God calls me. I am at peace with

my life and my work. I don’t think I have any

enemies.”

Everybody has a perspective about life.

This life is about the journey of the soul.

We can choose the sword to rule,

or we can choose love to heal the broken hearted

and the wounded,

we can choose love to bind all nations together.

Even the snakes and lions and lizards will be our

Friends and that’s GOOD NEWS!

Donehoo, Patricia

THE LIFE OF PATRICIA A. DONEHOO

December 30, 1932 to December 20, 2008 (75)

Memorial Service December 30, 2008 1:30 p.m.

On Christmas Eve, December 24, 2005, there was a new visitor in our presence. She had on large glasses that quickly defined her. We didn’t know then that she was journalist of fashions. Sylvia Ginoza found out she was from New York. Sylvia said to me later, “Why would anyone from New York come to Fallbrook?”

Patricia A. Donehoo stepped into our lives and left with us bits of New York and when she left us, on December 13, she took with her bits of the world: the hugs of children, kindness that comes from small town America from California to Nebraska, from Iowa to Texas, an aloha spirit from Hawaii that extends to San Diego, and the warmth of family in a church nestled in the hills of Fallbrook.

Pat Donehoo was born in Pelham Manor in New York on December 30, 1932, the daughter of Florence Mortlock and John Donehoo. She attended a boarding school for girls in her growing years. After high school, she attended the Fashion Institute of New York in Manhattan. One of her first jobs was with a newspaper in Manhattan. Then she was hired by the Woman’s Day Magazine in New York as the senior editor of fashions. Once or twice a year, she would travel to Paris to attend fashion revues. She said, “I saw some of the most beautiful models in the world.” She worked for Woman’s Day for 20 years.

Her daughter Kristin says: “She would take interest in fashions that any common woman could afford. She helped women dress based on their budget. She loved high fashions, but knew how to help people.”

Pat served as a management consultant for CBS, Dow Chemical, and other major corporations. She was a reporter for CBS-TV “News at Noon, ” She had published articles in Encyclopedia Americana and the New York Journal American. Dick and Sally Shoup said, “We were $100,000 in debt. Pat’s guidance replaced that with an $80,000 annual income. She saved our lives.”

In August of 1951, Pat and John J. Bell were married in New York. Pat and her husband eventually divorced. Her family today includes two children, daughter Kristin Beskeen and her husband Mark of Elk Grove, California; grandchildren Alison and Colin. Colin and his wife Katie celebrate the one grandchild – Riley. Her son Kerry who is the elder recently married Carol and they reside in Tarboro, North Carolina. With Kerry, Pat also has grandchildren Kelean and Teresa, four grandchildren in all.

Pat lived in New York until 1993. She moved to Benecia, California for a period, then she moved to Indiana where she worked as a nanny for a mildly mentally challenged child. She always had an interest in Shakespeare and moved to Ashland, Oregon. Then she relocated in Tucson, Arizona. In 2005 she came to Fallbrook to live with her son Kerry. That brings us to Christmas Eve.

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In 2005 after the Christmas Eve service, Pat started to attend our church. In May there was a secretarial opening and Pat was hired. Pat was a New Yorker and as the reporter from the North Country Times reported, yes, she had a flair for fashions. When Pat answered the phone, she started to refer to people as “hon.” Then she started to call me “hon.” I said, Pat, stop using the word “hon.” What if the governor of California called. You wouldn’t call him “hon.” Being from New York, Pat also had a direct approach. I told Pat, “Pat, this is not New York. This is Fallbrook.” You need a softer touch—these are folks from Iowa, Oklahoma, Nebraska, South Dakota, Colorado, and Indiana. In addition, this is also a church family. It’s a different culture from New York. As you all know, Pat became a part of our church family and she learned, patience, compassion, and a softer touch with people. Pat also found that in our church family, there is a deep sense of God present in everything that we do.

Patricia A. Donehoo—New York fashions editor, mother, grandmother, church secretary, and a friend. So what was Pat like? She was boisterous, gregarious, caring, worldly, knowledgeable, talented, fashionable. She loved animals. She was a dog person; she also had a cat. She hated computers, but she learned to like them. She was resourceful, read the New York Times till about her last day. She loved to read and stayed informed with historical books and the classics. One of her favorite authors was Jane Austin. She enjoyed her travels to Europe, Germany and France, and especially loved the pyramids. She had the heart of a writer and when she joined the Fallbrook Newcomers, she was named editor of the newsletter.

When Pat came to our church to work, what I learned was, she was committed to her work, she was punctual, and she was willing to learn. She said to me, “If I do something wrong, please let me know.” …And I did. I did many times. Pat was not the best proof -reader, so every Thursday, Nancy Rexrode came to proof read. Pat always came to church about 8:15 a.m., she spent time in the sanctuary to pray and she was at the office at 8:30 a.m.

Pat warmed her heart for our children. The little children will miss her. Little Ethan Schmutz says, “She won’t be here to grab my cheeks anymore and say, ‘You’re so handsome.’” James Smith says, “Oh no, that means there’ll be no more candy.” One day Pat ran out of candy and James decided to go and see her anyway. Pat used to say to Maggie Schmutz, “You’re beautiful, but the best part is, you’re smart too.! The twins, Isabel and Elizabeth White always stopped by to say hello to Pat, and often, so did Debbie Buckley’s preschool children.

One day Pat said to Connie Schmutz, “Whoever I meet, everyday I want to say something positive.”

Patricia A. Donehoo. Pat lived in and walked in the life of fashion and glamour. But here life was not all glamour. She had her struggles like all the rest of us. Pat told me

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that when she met some of the most beautiful women in the world, they all found something they were not happy about—the nose, the hips, or some part of their body. What we all learn is that, this is not a perfect world. Pat, as many of you know, was a survivor of breast cancer. She completed her radiation treatment just a few months ago.

We will learn in time that the beauty of life is in friendship, family, being able to share the depth of our hearts, to see the world as a child, to take mundane things and see something extraordinary in them. Pat often would go to our memorial rose garden and she would cut a rose, place in a vase and I would find it on my desk. This is the soft touch of the soul. When Pat fell on December 10 and was taken to the Palomar Hospital; our Preschool Director, Sue Shimer, accompanied the ambulance to emergency. When I got to the emergency room Sue said to me, “I didn’t want her to be alone.” This is the soft touch of the soul.

Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 13:34) Paul says, without love, “I am nothing.” (I Corinthians 13:2) When we bring Christ into everything that we do, the world, the work place, the home, and the heart will never be the same again.

When Life is but Dust, 10/26/08

“When Life is But Dust” 10/26/08

Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17

October 26, 2008 Dr. Dennis Ginoza

This morning I want to begin by saying God made you

and that’s good; but you are like dust and to dust

you shall return. The psalmist says that we

are like a dream. One moment we are here, the

next moment we’re gone. What we learn today is

nothing lasts forever. I remember my first care was

a Mustang, Sylvia had a Plymouth, then we got a Toyota;

a VW camper van, an Aerostar, a Saturn, another Saturn,

and a Mercury for our son ……. and all those cars are gone.

(I was going to count all my shoes, but I decided no way).

The Bible says you are dust and to dust you shall return.

How many of you have shopped in Mexico?

When I was fourteen years old, I went on my first trip

across the border to Tijuana, Mexico. A street

peddler was selling watches, Fifteen dollars! Ten dollars!

Seven dollars! Hmm! Maybe. Five dollars. Okay!

I bought a watch for $5.00. It looked like a nice watch, it

had a blue interior and a second hand.. I wore it to school

every day. Four weeks later the watch was dead. I was

disappointed. I could see moisture in it.

Nothing lasts forever.

When Thomas Edison Edison was a newsboy, between runs

he had lay overs in Detroit. He didn’t sit around and

waste his tiem. He went to the library to study.

The point I want to make is—time is fleeting. So I

ask you, How are you spending your time?

In 1877 Edison invented the phonograph. When he

was working on the light bulb, he failed 200 times. A

friend told him, “Why don’t you just give up?” He said,

“Now I know 200 ways not to do it. On December 21,

1879 the world was astounded. He invented the electric light bulb.

You are dust and to dust you shall return, but in the mean

time, we have time to do something worthwhile.

The typewriter was invented by a farmer,

the cotton gin by a carpenter,

the telephone from an afternoon by a teacher,

the pneumatic tire by a physician.

This morning I want to also tell you that the first sermon is that

is preached Sunday morning is not by your pastor. It is

by you. Let me tell you how.

*You preach the first sermon when you say good morning

in the parking lot, in the narthex, or as you sit in your chair.

*You preach the first sermon when you say to a visitor,

Welcome! And you slide over.

*You preach the first sermon when you sing the hymns

with joy and enthusiasm.

*You preach the first sermon when you listen to the music

attentively and appreciation.

*You preach the first sermon when you smile at a little

child or a young person or to another adult.

*You preach the first sermon when you place your gifts

in the offering plate and thank God for your blessings.

*You preach the first sermon when you listen to the

Bible reading or as you read along.

Many sermons are preached even before the your pastor gets

up to give his sermon. Good Morning!

So how are you spending your time?

Professor JA Carlson did a study about hunger. He found:

a bird can go without food for nine days,

a man or a woman twelve days,

a dog twenty days,

a turtle five hundred days,

a fish one thousand days,

insects twelve hundred days

The Bible teaches us that if we go without spiritual

food, we will eventually die and waster away.

You are dust and to dust you will return.

Jesus teaches us that when we feed our soul with spiritual

food, it will lead us to life. Jesus said, “If a child

asks for bread, will you give him a stone?” If you

give your child bread, just think how much more

your Father in heaven who loves you, will give to you.

I realize today more than yesterday, that our spirits

can be up one day, and the next, it can be

down. One person told me, when the Chargers

are losing and he can’t stand it anymore, he goes

outside and works in the garden. The economy is

down; how are you coping?

Rabbi Kushner says, “Enough is not enough.” If you had

a million dollars, is that enough? Did you hear

about the Arab who spent one million dollars in

Las Vegas in one weekend? Enough is not enough.

You are dust and to dust you will return. How bad can it

get? Rabbi Kushner tells about how he was counseling

a woman on her marriage. First she offered

him a cup of instant coffee. She got hot water from

the tap. He said, “It was the worst coffee he ever

had.” He pretended to sip on it. She told him how

terrible her husband was. He was always putting

her down. Nothing she does is good enough in his

eyes. He is always criticizing her. She told the Rabbi,

“I can’t stand it anymore. If I hear one more word of

criticism,” she said, “I’ll kill myself.” Then she said,

“Rabbi, how’s your coffee? Would you like another

cup?” What would you do? I know what I would do?

I’d have another cup.

The psalmist said, “Have compassion on your servants.”

Jesus taught us, when we give food to the hungry,

a drink to the thirsty,

clothing to the naked,

when we visit the sick and those in prison;

when we do this the least of them,

we have also done unto him. Every good deed

opens the door of the Kingdom.

The Dow Jones is going down,

people are losing their homes,

more jobs are being lost—

these are really tough times.

Emily Dickinson wrote:

Hope is the thing with feather—

That perches in the soul

And sings the tune without the words

And never stops at all.

Jesus teaches we are to be yoked to him like two oxen.

He said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn

from me. ...For my yoke is easy and

my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:29-30)

If there is any time to not lose hope, it is now. If there

is any time we must our faith in Christ it is now.

If there is any time when we need to help each

other, it is now.

One evening Joe was driving home on the country road.

Ever since the Levi factory closed, he was

unemployed. He was driving down a dark and

lonely road. He almost didn’t see her. A woman

in her Mercedes was stopped along the road and

for an hour, nobody stopped to helped her. She

only had a flat tire. Joe stopped to help her, but he

looked more like a bum and she was a bit scared.

He said, “I’m here to help you Ma’ma.” It was

a chilly night so he said toher, “Why don’t you wait

in my car, it’s warmer.” He changed her tire and

she asked him, “How much do I owe you?” For Joe

this was not a job, he was just there to help. He said

to her, just help someone else in need.

As the lady was heading for St. Louis, she stopped at an old

café, nothing fancy. The waitress gave her a towel

to wipe the snow off her forehead and served her with

a sweet smile. It was obvious she was eight months

pregnant. The woman gave her a $100 bill to pay for

the meal and didn’t wait for the change. The woman

wrote a note on the napkin saying, “You don’t owe

me anything. Someone else helped me once the way

I’m helping you.” That night when the waitress

came to bed, she laid down next to her husband and

said, “Everything’s going to be all right. I love you Joe.”

What little we do today, the sight of God, begins to change the

universe we live in. This is the teaching of our Lord.