Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Would You Rather Be Rich or Poor?

2 Sm 7:18-19, 24-29/Mk 4:21-25

The ending of today’s gospel sounds like a cynical commentary on modern society. "To those who have, more will be given; from those who have not, what little they have will be taken away." It seems to say that the rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer. But that’s not at all what this text is about.

So what is it that people have and then either get more of or lose all of? Jesus isn’t talking about money or wealth in any form. He’s talking about the extent and depth of our connectedness to God. If we are already deeply rooted in God, our spirits will grow larger, richer, and fuller by the day. But if our connection to the Lord is only superficial, it certainly won’t grow, and it probably won’t last at all.

So here’s our question for the day: Does your God-connection have growing power? Is it changing your life day by day? Or is it anemic and able to do little more than stumble through a memorized prayer? If it’s the former, you’ve got an enviable future ahead of you for sure. If your God-connection is the latter, be prepared for a future you’d never choose.

That’s the equation, and there are no exceptions. Why not be rich through and through?!

Thursday, April 1, 2010

It’s Dangerous to Believe Our Own Press Releases

2 Sam 7:4-17 / Mk 4:1-20

None of us has any greater enemy than our own egos, which lie and lie to us, just as the snake did in the story of Adam and Eve. "You can be God’s equal," says the ego. What a lie that is, but we fall for it again and again, and it gets us in terrible trouble.

A raging ego running rampant is what we see in today’s Old Testament story about David. The little shepherd boy had become a king and he seemed to have forgotten who put him on the throne and guaranteed victory in all his battles. David proposed to build a house for God. It seemed like a nice gesture; even the prophet Nathan thought so.

But God who reads all hearts understood David’s heart all too well. David didn’t recognize his own radical poverty in the face of God who made the whole universe. What could he give to God that wasn’t God’s already? What would God need a house for if he already had a whole universe? These thoughts hadn’t occurred to David. His ego had silently shrunk God down to David’s own size!

That can happen. We can shrink God, and we can inflate ourselves. Both will lead us into foolishness that delays our getting on with the real business of life, which is building God’s kingdom not only around us but within us. The core of building the kingdom is the endless process of transformation whose goal is a heart shaped in God’s likeness.

So don’t get distracted by delusions of grandeur. Remember who you are and what your real work is. And be assured that the God who made you will at every turn provide you with what you need to complete your journey.