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I am always amazed at the mentality of people and what is written on the products packaged for consumers. As I read the labels and these warnings that were found on actual consumer products:
On a Duraflame fireplace log: “Caution-Risk of Fire.”
On a children’s Batman costume: “WARNING: Cape does not enable user to fly.’
On a bottle of hair coloring: ‘Do not use as ice cream topping’
On a sunshade for the car: “Do not drive with sunshade in place.”
And for the first time parent this label was found on a portable stroller: “Remove infant before folding for storage.”
Don’t forget the fingernail polish that reads, “Hard as nails.” Really?
Open your Bible to our Scripture Lesson: Matthew 7:21-29. Jesus parable of the wise and foolish builder at the end of Jesus Sermon on the Mount.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.’ Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like the wise man who built his house upon the rock; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do the will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it. And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for Jesus taught them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.
The late great Erma Bombeck (internationally known American humorist/author from Dayton, Ohio who died April 22, 1996), wrote: “I can’t remember the name of the man who spoke at my high school commencement, but I remember what he said. He told us the future of the world rested on our shoulders and he charged us with finding our destiny and fulfilling it. He went on to say we alone must cure disease, hunger and poverty throughout the world, and above all, we must find success.
I glanced over at Jack, the class deficient who couldn’t even find his parents after parked their car, and I got an uneasy feeling. Not only that, but for those of us who had planned to sleep in for a week, the speech was very depressing, as it seemed to call for a lot of work from such a small class.
After the speech, the entire group scrambled out of the auditorium in search of success as if it were the first time on a scavenger hunt. We had no idea what it was, where to look for it, how much it cost, whether it was in season or what it looked like, but from that day on we got up early pursued it until late at night. Sometimes we heard another classmate had found it, but when we confronted him, he assured us that if he had, he would be happier.
By our tenth reunion, no one had found it yet. The men struggled in their jobs and fertilized their lawns on the weekends, and the women raised babies and polished the bottom of Revere Ware. It seemed we were never rich enough, thin enough or important enough to qualify for success.”
Erma Bombeck ends stating, “I’ve spent a lifetime trying to figure out who has success?”
An elderly gentleman wasn’t feeling well, and became irritated with his doctor because he wasn’t feeling better after five visits. “Look,” said the doctor “I’m doing all I can do to help you. I can’t make you younger!” The old man said to his doctor, “ I wasn’t particularly interested in getting younger. I just want to continue growing older!”
In the eloquent words of pastor Peter Marshall, "The measure of life is not its duration, but its donation.”
About a year before his death, George Bernard Shaw, largely considered to be the twentieth century most educated person granted a one of his rare interviews to a journalist. The journalist questioned the aged playwright at length.
Finally the journalist asked, “Mr. Shaw, you have known some of the greatest men of our time: statesmen, artists, philosophers, writers and musicians. You’ve outlived most of them. Suppose it were possible to for you to call back of those great minds-which one would it be? What person do you miss the most?” Without hesitation Shaw replied, “The man I miss the most, is the man I used to be!”
I ask of you at this moment, “What is success? “If it is not length or width perhaps it’s height! Height which says that success is in fame, prosperity, wealth, the size of your house, the car you drive, the brand name of the clothes you wear, your title.
King Solomon was one of the most central Biblical figures in Jewish heritage and tucked away in the Old Testament of the Bible is the Book of Ecclesiastes, which basically is a journal that King Solomon kept. In his journal King Solomon confesses that he’s reached the height and width and length of life. Was it money? King Solomon had it. Was it pleasure? King Solomon had hundreds of beautiful wives. Was it military power, architectural splendor, fame? King Solomon knew it all. “All this is vanity,” he complained. Nothing satisfied.
A millionaire lost all of his wealth. Crushed from his economic loss the man cried, “Everything is gone! GONE! IT’S ALL LOST! Without hesitation someone said, “Oh I’m so sorry to hear that your wife is dead.” The man looked up alarmed and replied, “MY WIFE IS DEAD?” Without hesitation someone said, “Oh I’m so sorry to hear your children have died.” The man looked up with tears in his eyes and a lump in his throat and replied, MY CHILDREN ARE DEAD?” And someone replied, “Oh how it pains me to hear that you have lost your character, your church and your friends, and your God, Christ!” The man protested, saying he’d lost none of these things that were mentioned. “But I thought you said you lost everything!” The man sobered, and it wasn’t long before he realized that he’d lost none of the things that are important in life. After all, money can buy a bed, but not sleep; books, but not wisdom; a harlot, but not love; food, but not appetite; sin’s pleasures, but not salvation’s peace. Money can buy a house, but not a home; medicine, but not health; notoriety, but not character.
A person can lose their height with age, their width, even their length of life, but if they still have depth, if their life is still founded on the rock why measure their success?
What Jesus is telling us in this parable of the wise and foolish, or successful and failed builders, is that depth or foundations are the most important element in building successfully.
One man built high and wide and long on a shallow sandy foundation. The other built up and out and long on a deep foundation of stone. The shallow one caved in while the deep one stood. Foundations are everything, Jesus said.
For it takes one breath to enter this world and one breath to exit. Everything in-between is a gift.
A gift like the gift Jesus gave us as He sat in the Upper Room with His Disciples on the night of His betrayal. Jesus took the bread, blessed it and gave thanks and broke it saying, this is my body given for you. Eat this often in remembrance of me. Then after supper Jesus took the cup, blessed it and said, this is my blood of the New Covenant. Drink this often in remembrance of me.
The teacher’s name is Mrs. Thompson. Mrs. Thompson stood in front of fifth-grade class on the very first day of school and she told them a lie. Like most of the teachers, she looked at her pupils and said that she loved them all the same, that she would treat them all alike. And that was impossible for right there in the front row. Slumped in his seat was a little boy named Teddy.
Mrs. Thompson had watched Teddy most of the year before and noticed he didn’t play well with the others, that his clothes were unkept and that he constantly needed a bath. And Teddy was unpleasant. It got to the point where Teddy actually enjoyed marking his papers with a big marker, making bold red X’s and then marking a big F at the top of the paper biggest of all.
Mrs. Thompson went back through Teddy’s files and was amazed to find how highly he was thought of and what a good student he was. Then Mrs. Thompson found a note that said, “The death of Teddy’s mom has deeply affected him.”
Christmas came and all the students brought their teacher a nicely wrapped gift. Teddy walked up in front of the class and placed a brown paper bag on his teacher’s desk as all the students laughed at him. Mrs. Thompson reached into Teddy’s bag and pulled out a rhinestone bracelet with some of the stones missing and a perfume bottle that was about a quarter full of cologne. The students laughed louder and Mrs. Thompson put on the rhinestone bracelet and sprayed on a little bit of the perfume. Teddy stayed behind as the other students rushed out and said, “Thank you Mrs. Thompson for my Christmas present. When you sprayed my mom’s perfume on you smelled just like my mom.”
Years later Mrs. Thompson received a letter that read, Mrs. Thompson I want to thank you for inspiring me, believing in me, giving me the desire to not quit and to make something of my life. I am getting married and would love if you would come to our wedding and sit in my mothers seat. You may never know what you mean to me. I love you, Dr. Teddy F. Stoddard. M.D.
Mrs. Thompson wore that rhinestone bracelet that she never threw away. She must have smelled just like Teddy’s mom would on his wedding day, as she learned the brand of that special perfume given to her by a little boy years ago in fifth grade.
The main point of this morning’s sermon is that we can never know what type of impact we can make on another’s life who are looking. Lost, hungry, searching, seeking, hurting, and existing, as they know existence.
In fifty-three years on this earth and overcoming major odds of survival due to being orphaned at birth, challenges and illness, I learned something very important in my life in the year 2000. Life is not the paycheck you make or the benefits from a good paying job. Life is not about your status as an adjunct professor, or any title. Life is about holding the hand of the one you love, being there at their side as they are there at your side.
I learned as my wife Pilar and I stared death directly in the eyes that in the end all that matters is the foundation your love and trust is built on. In the end all of that of this world gets washed away like the foundation of the fool who built their house on the sand.
When the winds blow, the thunder booms, the rain pours and your life floods from the tears in your eyes, not wanting to let go of the only foundation that matters. The foundation you built upon the rock, Jesus.
Is success to you maintaining the status quo? Is success to you being able to re-examine how you have been doing things to how can I do better what I have to do to serve the Lord?
This church is looking at the “Rebirth Model” which says the way we have been doing things isn’t good enough anymore. We as a church family need to examine what we are doing and how we can improve/change so as to better serve God not only with in these walls but through outreach to the community and the world we live in.
As a church family we need to grasp hold of and remember Luke 12:23
“Life is about more than food, and the body more than clothing.”
Father God, may we build our house not on the foundation of the sand but on the foundation of the rock, your Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And Father God may we remember age is a perception and we are never too old to tell the one we love I love you and to believe in another. It is that belief that we have in another that may make their lives more solid as they no longer feel they are standing on sinking sand. Amen
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