George Floyd & Ma’Khia Bryant in the Arms of Jesus

John 10:11-18

This Fourth Sunday of Easter is also known as ‘Good Shepherd Sunday’. Throughout the readings and prayers for this occasion, we encounter, time and again, Jesus defined as our shepherd and ourselves as the sheep of his flock.

I was going to preach today exclusively on Jesus as the good shepherd, but in light of recent events affecting our Black brothers and sisters, I feel compelled to speak to those events.

For more than two weeks, all the world waited with bated breath as we watched the trial of one of the policemen accused of murdering George Floyd. Most of us were astounded at the preponderance of prosecution evidence and disgusted at the defense Derek Chauvin’s attorneys presented. Most people were sure that there would be a conviction of Derek Chauvin, his executioner, but because of past experience with white cop/black victim incidents, many of us were afraid the ‘thin blue line’ of defense would prevail. However, this time the legal system returned a valid conviction on, not only one, but all three charges.

But before we could celebrate that justice was delivered in the George Floyd trial, just less than an hour before the verdict came in, 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant was shot and killed by a white Columbus policeman. This is the seventh death of Blacks by law enforcement in the last four months!

Then Friday, a deputy killed Andrew Brown Jr., in North Carolina while attempting an arrest.

Please say with me their names:

Miles Jackson . . .

Andre Hill . . .

Casey Goodson, Jr. . .

Adam Toledo . . .

Duante Wright . . .

Ma’Khia Bryant . . .

Andrew Brown, Jr.

This slaughter has got to stop!!

No matter whether George Floyd was a found sheep, or a lost sheep, he was still a child of God, and deserved to be treated as such. But Derek Chauvin saw him as a threat to himself, and maybe others, and mercilessly took his life by kneeling on his neck for over nine minutes. He forgot God’s commandment:

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. (Luke 6:31)

What he did was not subdue George so that he could not harm the police, but maliciously kept his knee on George’s neck until there was no breath or movement – and then kept it there for another three minutes. He was not lawfully carrying out his duties as a police officer sworn to uphold the law and protect the people of Minneapolis. If you see the video, there was only a blank detached stare in Chauvin’s eyes during that whole nine-plus minutes; with no sense that he realized that George Floyd was another human being.

And for once, in a nation of inequality, the brave jury of twelve people, as well as a number of police, determined that Derek Chauvin had committed a crime and should be punished for it. We all know that this one verdict is not going to correct the horrendous murders of black men and women, but it may be a start. Statistically, 98.3% of all police-involved shootings do not result in indictments, trials, or changes in policy and procedures.[1] We all need to work to bring awareness and remedy to police violence and brutality in our society, whether it comes from police or other people.

After the verdict came in, I imagined in my mind, that George Floyd was cradled in the arms of Jesus, being held in the love and comfort by the Savior of us all, protected from any further harm or grief or pain.

Still, as we breathed a collective sigh of relief Tuesday, our community felt the sting of another police shooting, resulting in a sixteen-year old black teenager dead from four gunshots.

Whether Ma’Khia was a troubled foster child, or this started as a spat with two other girls about a messy house and unmade bed, it came when Ma’Khia wielded a steak knife and was summarily shot by a Columbus police officer. The incident and actions of the police officer are still being investigated, so this is not the time to make presumptions. But nevertheless, another one of our Black sisters is dead at the hand of law enforcement.

It is time to mourn Ma’Khia, along with the others whose lives have been snuffed out by extreme use of lethal force by police, when it is likely that they would not have used such force if the victim had not been a person of color.

And so, I again imagine in my mind, that Ma’Khia Bryant is being cradled in the arms of Jesus, being held in the love and comfort of the Savior of us all, protected from any further harm or grief or pain.

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, said:

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:25–28).

That is what a good shepherd does. And that is what Jesus does for each of us – and we are his sheep.

He is, for all of us, the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for us. He searches for us when we’re lost, to save us and to show us the way to eternal life (Luke 19:10).

The Shepherd knows each sheep by name, they know his voice, and they follow him. He protects them. The hardest thing the shepherd has to protect us from is ourselves and our own foolishness.

We tend to be like sheep, consumed with worry and fear, mindlessly following after one another. By not following or listening to the Shepherd’s voice (John 10:27), we can be easily led astray by others to our own destruction.

George Floyd and Ma’Khia Bryant, although they no longer live in this human plane, are Jesus’ sheep, and now live eternally with Him. No one can remove them from the arms of Jesus.

But just like sheep, we generally do not ‘get’ it – that is why Jesus repeats this passage of scripture so often. He says:

• • He is the Good Shepherd,
  • He laid down his life for his sheep,
  • And he knows the name of all his sheep,
  • His sheep follow him.

And still we do not always ‘get’ it!

If we are going to look at Jesus as the ‘Good’ Shepherd, we must remember that we are the sheep. We all have been lost, but

Jesus comes and gathers us all back into the safety of the flock.

He shows us how to follow him, listen to him, and come back to the safety of his arms. And he also provides an example of how we can be shepherds to those around us. Jesus challenges us to not only follow him, but be the voice and person to lead others to Him. We each can be the sheep that follow him, but also a member of the flock that lead others to Him.

We are all called to be his sheep.

I would like for you to set aside some quiet time this week pondering

“Who is a good shepherd for you and for whom are you a good shepherd?”

I invite you to take these questions with you –

When we listen to Jesus, as sheep listen to the shepherd, how do we respond?

If we do not respond, are we really listening?

Do we hear him when he speaks to us?

Do we listen when we hear him?

How do we respond to the voice of Jesus?

Amen

 Delivered to Saint John’s Episcopal Church, Columbus, OH; 25 April 2021

 

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[1]      Carlos Watson, “A Verdict for America”, CNN, Washington Post; 24 April 2021

Our Tongues Can Be Lethal Weapons

In the book of James, we hear:

People can tame all kinds of animals and birds and reptiles and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison. (James 3:7-8)

We hear that the tongue can never be tamed, but I don’t believe that.

Our tongues can be used for many things: some good and some bad, some nourishing and some detrimental. Let’s look at some of the ways we use our tongue.

Too often our tongues are used for gossip.

Just exactly what is gossip?

Gossip is second or third hand information that someone dumps on you without you asking for it, or without the person being gossiped about knowing about. Gossip can be true, but is usually partially true, or completely false. It is always negative personal information about another that puts them in a bad light, even if the gossiper has good intentions.

Then there is slander.

What is slander?

The Bible defines slander as ‘speech that is harmful to a person’s name and reputation’. It’s essentially character assassination . . . the act of smearing someone. Gossip and slander color people’s perceptions of an individual unfairly and unjustly without their knowledge or consent.

One major component in gossip and slander is that the person being torn down is out of the loop.

Gossipers and slanders do not speak directly to the one they are demeaning – because they know their motives are destructive.

Think about sometime that you have heard gossip about someone and their hurt when it finally got back to them. Did you ever think how deeply a person and their family could be hurt when someone attacks their character without their knowledge or consent.

Why do people gossip about others?

• They may be suspicious of the motives of others 
• They could be easily offended (thin-skinned) 
• They may be envious and jealousy 
• They may continue to believe the worst about others 
• They often judge others for misbehaviors they are prone to 
• Becoming the Holy Spirit for others 
• They may use others as a scapegoats to get out of sticky situations 
• Often they tear down others so that they look better*

It seems that most people who spread gossip never think about this. Nor do they realize that what they’re doing is gossiping. (Some people, who intend to smear another person, in fact do know exactly what they’re doing. Others, naively spread gossip without realizing what sort of destruction it brings in the lives of others.)

Here’s a tip: always evaluate people based on your own first-hand experience with them, not on what someone else tells you about them. And remember:

Treat others the way you want to be treated. (Luke 6:31)

No one wishes to be the subject of gossip. If you hear someone gossiping about another, never pass along anything that will hurt them.

So what should we do if we hear gossip about someone else?

First, we should consider these questions:

• Would I want someone talking about me like this?
• How would my family feel about this?
• Would I want someone talking about my spouse, my mother, my father, my children, my best friends?

Most people don’t think about this when they hear or spread gossip about another individual.

If someone begins to say things that put another in a bad light, we have a responsibility to interrupt such speech and tell them we want no part of the gossip. If an email containing gossip is sent to us, we should disregard the content (that’s what the delete button is for!).

Plus we should go to the person being targeted and make them aware of it. Think about it: If someone was spreading something negative about you, would you not want to be made aware of it?

Have you ever noticed that gossip that tears others down travels like a brush fire, but news of good things about a person seems to move along at a snail’s pace? Why is it that we often immediately believe and embrace negative assessments of people, but good things about a person are not believed?

Gossip is like poison that once someone drinks, they cannot get out of their system. And it always separates people. Even close friends and loved ones. Gossip not only damages the person being gossiped about, but it also damages the person hearing the gossip and the person passing along the gossip, for it causes them to judge the other unfairly.

But our tongues can also be used to praise people.

How many times have you said something nice about someone?

How many times have you told a person they looked nice?

How many times have you acknowledged to the person that they did something to make the world a better place?

How many times have you told someone that you really liked them and wanted to be their friend?

How many times have you said ‘thank you’ when someone did something for you, no matter how small?

This is what we should be doing with our tongues – praising people and raising up the goodness in the world. We can bring peace rather than contention – just by what words come out of our mouths!

In Ephesians 4:29, we are reminded:

Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift.

How are you going to use your tongue for today? Tomorrow? This week?

Are you going to build up people or tear them down?

What would you like to hear about yourself?

Let us pray:

Lord Jesus, Your Words only reflect wonders; help us respect others, that we may never gossip against anyone. Let us remember that we are all beloved children of God and worthy in your eyes. Help us to use our tongues only for good, not bad. Amen.

 
Delivered at In The Garden, Trinity Episcopal Church on Capitol Square, Columbus, OH 7
September 2014

*Marsha Fisher, “Accusation,” Be In Health Conference, April 29, 2008, Thomaston GA

He Turned The World Upside Down . . . And So Can We

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, our Lord and Redeemer.

One night over 2000 years ago, during the Jewish season of Passover, a man named Jesus gathered his friends together to share with them a meal one last time – and to share one last time a message which was so unique, so revolutionary, so dangerous that the entire political and cultural authority of the nation of Israel feared that message, and its carpenter messenger, and the next day would unite to kill him – and they hoped to kill his message.

In fact, in the past 2000 year, that message has been spread over most of the earth, and has affected more change than armies or kings or presidents, or the rich or learned or powerful. That message is still with us today and it has turned the world upside down; it just won’t give up and die. It’s a message that calls us to embrace a radical love which humbles itself before its enemies, reaches out to comfort the untouchables and forgives those who seek to destroy it, and to love one another as brothers and sisters.

Aware of what awaited him, Jesus wrapped a slave’s towel around his waist, dropped to his knees and began performing one of the most menial tasks of the culture at that time: washing the dirty feet of his disciples. To wash the feet was the work of a slave, not that of a teacher, a Master, the Anointed Son of God.

Jesus knew that he was dining with Judas, who would betray him, and Peter, who would deny him. Yet he knelt before them and gently washed their feet, modeling for them and for us a radical love that goes far beyond worthiness, a love that is faithful in spite of our weakness and betrayal. In this kind of love there is not only a willingness, but a plea for reconciliation – for brokenness in relationships to be made whole again. God willingly humbles Himself in order to reach out and find the hearts of those who have fallen away and become lost.

Throughout his ministry, Jesus repeatedly taught that the

first shall be last and the last shall be first (Matthew 20:16)

But he had good reason to doubt that his followers could really understand his message. So once again, Jesus turned worldly notions of success, authority and power upside down, revealing them for what they were – a false standard that pulls God’s children further and further away from God and His Kingdom.

Peter’s reaction to Jesus kneeling before him to wash his feet is an indication of just how shocking it was. For Jesus to suddenly take on such a humble role went against everything in Peter and turned his world upside down. Such behavior completely undermined the rules of authority, then as now, which keeps people in their ‘proper’ place and protects society from anarchy. People on the top have always fought to stay there and to keep those beneath them from getting any closer. That’s how it’s always been.

Peter left everything to follow Jesus – the Messiah – the Son of God. If Jesus is now stooping to foot washing… then Peter’s entire understanding of power – and of the Lord of lords – is threatened – exactly what Jesus intended.

But, in kneeling an serving, Jesus did not demand that Peter and the others look up to him in obedience and honor; rather he compelled each disciple to look down. He put himself in the position of the powerless and weak and all those that society deemed expendable. In so doing, Jesus calls them to seek God there on the earth, among the needy and rejected and disenfranchised – and to be in service to ‘them’. And, in all He taught us, that is where Jesus still calls us to be – down on our knees, in service to others – regardless of who ‘they’ are.

Tonight and whenever we take the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist – perhaps we can listen for the gentle voice of Jesus inside us, calling us to join him on this earth in humble service to all God’s children.

We believe that’s what Jesus did at the Last Supper. He knew he was leaving the people he loved on earth, and he wanted to leave them the gift of Himself.

Tonight we remember this Last Supper, and Jesus with His friends breaking of the bread and sharing of the cup -these are things to remember him by. And the washing of feet –a commitment to love and serve.

Jesus, God Incarnate, knelt like a slave to wash his friends’ feet. He made them clean – even his friend Judas. This is real, hands-on loving. He washes away the sin; he forgives all. John tells us in Chapter 13:1:

Having loved his own, he loved them to the end.

But Jesus is handing on something even more important as well. He asks us to share what we have received: the gift of loving and forgiving. In Luke 6:31, Jesus said,

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

When Jesus had finished washing the disciples’ feet, He said to them,

Since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you (John 13:14-15).

I believe we, too, can turn our world upside down by following Jesus’ example. Because He was a servant of all mankind to show us the way, to give us hope, we must serve too.

Let us pray:

Dear Lord, on this night that we remember you through the mystery of the Eucharist, let us also be every mindful that it is not enough to only remember you through communal acts. You have charged us to do unto others and be a servant to those around us, particularly those who society has rejected. May we remember this command and live our lives in glory to you.

Amen
 
 
Delivered At Saint John’s Worthington, Worthington, OH 28 March 2013

The Serenity Prayer (What Do We Really Say Each Week?)

We say the Serenity Prayer every Sunday, but I wonder how many of us have thought about what it really means

or where it came from.

So for the next few weeks, we are going to delve into the history and meaning of the prayer, what it tells us about our daily lives.

The Serenity Prayer was first used by a famous theologian in a sermon in 1943, but was actually written in the 18th century. What we say is just a small part of the original prayer. The rest of the prayer goes like this:

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen.

The Serenity Prayer is the most popular prayer said around the world. The part that we say has been adopted by Alcoholics Anonymous as their meditation and prayer. But there are many other different versions modified to meet the needs of those praying it.

The purpose of the Serenity Prayer is to bring peace, faith, and certainty to the mind and heart of those seeking God’s support. It asks God for the wisdom and ability to accept “what is,” (what cannot be changed) and for the willingness to change the things which can be changed, and the ability to know which is which.

The Serenity Prayer acknowledges that if one seeks true peace and happiness in this life, it is important to consciously live and enjoy one’s life in each moment; embrace one’s struggles and challenges; accept the world as it is, not as we would like it to be; and trust in God and His will for us.

GOD GRANT ME SERENITY
Today we are going to look at the first line:

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.

First, we are asking God to help us; we are saying that we believe that He can, through His love for us, help us find what we seek and what we need. In Philippians 4:7 we are told:

the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds

Until we let the ‘peace of God’ enter into our mind, heart, and soul, we will never experience that ultimate peace that enables us to live in the most severe circumstances of life with calm and joy.

It acknowledges that God can ‘GRANT’ or give us what we ask as is best for us. We are His children and He wants the best for us.

We each are asking for ourselves (‘ME’), not for anyone else. We each are a unique expression of God; we have to live with God as our companion, living within us. We are given, by God, eternal love if we only ask. We are asking that God help us to find inner peace and serenity. We sometimes forget, the only person we can influence and control is ‘me’. We cannot encourage others to change if we ourselves have not changed; we must give out love to receive love, peace to be peaceful.

Then there is ‘SERENITY’. This is not a word we commonly use. The dictionary says serenity is:

being in the current reality, not fighting reality with illusions of how things should or should not be 1

Serenity is not a ‘devil may care’ attitude in which we are not concerned about anything – that state of denial where we live like nothing matters. Serenity is accepting the world as it is and being at peace with that.

When we are angry or resentful, blaming others for what is happening to us, this destroys the serenity we are asking God to help us find. We must breathe deeply in the here and now to be aware of the world . . . and aware that God is taking care of us.

We ask God to help us

ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE.
There are lots of things in this world that we have no control over; we all know that. We can’t do anything about the weather. We have very little control over the government, laws we have to live under, or taxes.

We cannot do anything about what has happened in the past. What is done is done and nothing is going to change that. When we dwell on what our childhood was like, or what our boss did to us or the way the system screwed us over, we are destroying our serenity over something that we can do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about.

No matter how hard we try, we cannot control our addictions; alcoholism, drugs, sex, overeating, gambling. We can sometimes manage them with help, but for those of us afflicted with any type of addiction, they will always be with us, lurking around the corner, ready to trip us up again. We have to acknowledge or ‘ACCEPT’ them as part of our life.

We may be angry about the circumstances of our birth, being born into poverty, being born gay, our skin color. There are things that may trouble us, get us frustrated and depressed, make us worry and destroy our serenity. We cannot change the things in the past! If we put out negative vibes or anger or hatred, we are only get those things back, often doubled. But if we send out love and understanding, we will get that back – and will find peace. We must try to live in this moment – right now: we are here out of the weather, have a community who cares, and have food. That, although there are adversities, we are loved, not only by God, but also by others.
There are situations with those we love or work with that irritate us. We cannot change their behavior, we can only change our reaction to them. To stop worrying and fretting, we need to ‘ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE’ and accept people the way they are. We need to enjoy the moment we are in – this very moment.

So with me, I urge you to close your eyes, take 3 long deep breaths, and know the serenity of God can be and is in YOU!!

Now, open your eyes, smile and say ‘God Loves You’ to those around you.

As we go through this week, notice those things that we dwell on which disturb our serenity.

Get rid of the anger, hatred and disappointment –

remember that we are loved by God.

And find a way to dwell in the here-and-now, reveling in those things that bring us happiness and peace.

Amen.2

THE COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS WE CAN
Last week we talked a great deal about the first line of the Serenity Prayer, which we say every Sunday:

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change

This week we are going to explore the next line from the prayer:

the courage to change the things I can

Change is a terrifying thing – I don’t know too many people who openly and whole-heartedly welcome change. Change brings with it apprehension, uncertainty, hostility, bitterness and fear. Change means that some old ways are abandoned and replaced by the unknown, the unfamiliar. Even if things aren’t working well as they are, we still often resist and reject making changes. Even if we are miserable, some people say:

“better the devil we know than the one we don’t”

Is it really better to continue behaviors, relationship or actions that are destroying ourselves and those around us?

Is it really better to continue in our comfortable, destruction behaviors, even if they are leading us nowhere and disappointing everyone we know than to try to change?
These changes are the things that take courage.

Courage is

Courage is being afraid and going ahead anyway (Dan Rather)

Courage is facing difficulty, danger, and pain in spite of fear.

Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear (Ambrose Redmoon)

Courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I’ll try again tomorrow (Mary Anne Radmacher)

Resistance to change comes from a fear of the unknown and a fear of failure. Even if we think the change will make things better, change can be disturbing.

But change is inevitable. NOTHING is going to stay the same as it is this moment. Perhaps you have heard the saying

“The only thing that is constant is change”.

And that is so true.

So the real wisdom of our prayer is to see the difference between the things we can change and those we can’t. And then, with God’s help, find within ourselves the courage and determination to change things we can change. . . and to change them for the better.

Last week we defined things we cannot change:

the way we look,

the family we are born into, and

things that happened to us in the past. Maybe it was the way our parents treated us, maybe it was violent habits we learned, the fact that someone got us addicted to a substance, the fact that we made a bad decision and there was no one to help us make it right.

But that is all in the past. We are who we are. We have the life we have lived to this moment, and we can’t change that.

But what can be changed?

What can be changed is OURSELVES!

We have to change how we look at ourselves and our attitudes toward other people.
Jesus came into the world with a story to tell, and that story was that each of us is important, each of us matters, and each of us is loved thoroughly and unconditionally by the one who created us. This is the good news – that we are all equal in the sight of God, that we will all live in Paradise as brothers and sisters, and that because God loves us, we must love each other.

Jesus taught us that we are in this world, in this lifetime to spread that love to others, to love others unconditionally as we are loved. He said over and over again that we are children of a living God, and that we are here to support each other, strengthen each other and be living examples of the strength, the power and the goodness of love.

The most courageous thing we can do in changing ourselves is to see ourselves fully every day as this loved and loving child of God. For only if we have the courage to accept this great truth, that we will be able to change for the good ourselves, our attitudes toward others, and the way we function in the world.

We must never, ever again say to ourselves

“I don’t count”,

“I don’t care what happens to me or to other people”.

We must never say to ourselves

“what I think is not important”

or

“what I do doesn’t matter”.

We must never believe that we are trapped and caught, and can’t break our habits of violence or addiction or anger.

We must never use demeaning words and names to describe ourselves or others. We are all beloved children of God. We must believe, with courage, that we are loved and have love to give, that we deserve happiness, and that, perhaps, we can give happiness to those around us.

We must constantly surround ourselves with people who lift us up, love us back, and bring out the good in us. And we must have the courage to stay away from people who pull us down, make us think negative thoughts, and lead us into destructive behaviors.

God does not want this for His children and we are beloved sons and daughters of God.

As difficult as these changes seem, with courage we can change them overnight.

We can decide to wake up in the morning and say “thanks God for another day of living. I am going to make this a great day”.

We can determine that this day we are going to be with people who are happy and make us happy. People who love God and help each other.

We can decide that this day we are going to smile at people, compliment people, thank them.

If someone tries to rub us the wrong way and get us into an argument, we can stop, count to ten, and determine that we will not respond to them with meanness, but we will turn the other cheek and walk away. We can feel sorry for them in a way, because clearly, they don’t know that God loves them.

After a few days of doing this, we will find that we draw to ourselves more and more people who support us as a good person. If we have courage to look at people as if they are good and loving children of God, we will get that same treatment back.

Each day that we work hard to improve ourselves will be a day that we will have grown courageously into the best person we can be. Rather than thinking of the things we have done wrong, the things we wish we could change, make a list of the things we have done right, the people we have helped, the positive and good thing about ourselves.

Positive and loving behavior will rapidly build within us the strength and courage we need to bring about any changes in our life we seek:

 New friends
 New job
 A better place to live
 Good outcomes for our children and our family.

Love creates love; goodness creates goodness. Forgiveness means you will be forgiven.
We will probably make mistakes, backslide, do or say things that were ’the old us’ but we can quickly turn it around, asking God to forgive us, asking forgiveness from those we have harmed, and shift back into that ‘good, positive, loving person God created us to be.

We cannot encourage others to change if we ourselves have not changed; we must give out love to receive love, practice peace to be peaceful.

It takes courage, it takes determination, it takes accepting one simple fact – God loves us and wants us to be happy.

As we go through this next week,

notice those things that we don’t like. . .

that we can change . . .

and get busy changing them!

Get rid of all the negatives: anger, hatred, disappointment, fear.

And remember that we are beloved sons and daughters of God.

Live each day as fully as possible and revel in those things that bring us and others happiness and peace.

Amen.3

THE WISDOM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE
For the last two week we have talked a great deal about the prayer we say every Sunday that has come to be called the Serenity Prayer:

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can
This week brings us to the last line of that prayer:
And the wisdom to know the difference.

SERENITY. . .
COURAGE . . .
WISDOM.

We have talked about how one has to find ‘SERENITY’ – peace (‘serenity’ is another word of peace) – find the inner peace to accept things we cannot change, and to quit trying to fight battles that are not under our control.

Whether it is our age or appearance, or what has been done by others in the past – let it go!

It is as it is, it is the hand we have been dealt – move on!

Realize that God does not make junk and we are as we were created by Him.

We talked about living in the present and letting God be in control.

We then explored the ‘COURAGE’ it often takes to change the things WE CAN CHANGE. These things mostly have to do with ourselves and how we face each day, our attitudes and actions – and how very important it is to realize that we are the beloved children of God, and brothers and sisters to the most perfect man who ever lived, Jesus Christ – If we seek to treat ourselves and others with love, respect, kindness, and compassion as Jesus taught us, we will be loved, respected and treated well in return.

If we radiate joyfulness, acceptance, and forgiveness, we will receive these things in return. And not only will we be changed, but everyone around us will be as well.
We were reminded to surround ourselves with people who bring positive values and attitudes into the world. And that it takes real courage and risk, to change friends and associates, work habits, addictions, to

do unto others as you would have them do unto you. (Luke 6:31)

So today we see that our Serenity Prayer ends by asking for

THE WISDOM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE
– to be able to choose the things we can change and to act on those and to not fret, worry or waste time trying to change things we cannot.

We pray for wisdom . . ., not answers. . ., not a crystal ball or magic wand – but
‘WISDOM’.

Most people think wisdom is intelligence, being smart and knowing lots of facts and information. And while that may be part of it, that really isn’t ‘it’.

The dictionary defines WISDOM as:

good sense: the ability to make sensible decisions and judgments based on personal knowledge and experience

knowing how to determine what is right and what is wrong.

The Bible defines wisdom as:

showing respect for God by reading and obeying His Word;

sound judgment, based on knowledge and understanding;

the ability to use knowledge and understanding successfully to solve problems, avoid or avert dangers, attain certain goals, or counsel others in doing so.

We see that both definitions seem to be based on ‘knowledge’. Knowledge is defined as:

the accumulation of facts and data that you have learned about or experienced. It’s being aware of something, and having information, facts and ideas acquired through study, research, investigation, observation, or experience.

Based on both the dictionary and Bible definitions, we must first gain knowledge about something before we will possess the wisdom to make good decisions.

But knowledge isn’t wisdom.

I have known lots of highly–educated people with lots of degrees and titles who can quote everything from scripture to Socrates, but haven’t got enough sense to get out of the rain. We have heard stories that Albert Einstein often forgot to put on his trousers before he left the house. And I have also known folks with very little formal education who have a sense of reality, of self-understanding and how the world works that is astounding. And it is usually based on knowledge, honed and tempered by experience, observation, and deep identification with what it means to be a human being.

And those people are wise.

We see in the last line, our prayer asks for

the wisdom to know the difference

to be able to distinguish between what we can control and what we cannot. When we truly ACCEPT the fact that we are not in control of certain things and God is, we can find peace and SERENITY. And if we COURAGEOUSLY CHANGE those things under our control, we can also find the peace inside us, and it will grow, and will spread to those around us, and draw to us others who share and work for peace, goodness and love.

Wisdom teaches us to need less and want fewer material things; to cast off old fears and resentments, for we know that God is in charge and we are serving his purpose. Wisdom reminds us to give more and carry the message of hope. Wisdom reminds us that we are helped through being helpful to others and by bringing wisdom to them.

As we grow in life, we’ve got to work towards the wisdom needed to understand the difference between the things we can’t change and the things we can. I like to think about it this way: you can’t change the past, you can only change the present, and you never know what’s going to happen in the future, but you can affect tomorrow by what you do today.

As people go through life’s daily bumps and bruises, we need to give them time to hurt; but encourage them to heal, because you can’t hurt forever. Sooner or later you have to stop thinking about the past, because there’s nothing you can change about it. Then you have to start doing something about what’s going on right now and living in the moment.

So, how do we gain wisdom?

By Prayer – ask God for peace, for patience, for understanding, for guidance; then listen for the answer and you will almost always be surprised by from where the answer comes.

By Reflection – listen instead of talk, learn different points of view, consider different ways to solve a problem or respond to a situation; think about your options

By Restraint –think before you speak or act, turn the other cheek, try to see all sides of a problem or situation; don’t act in revenge, anger or spite

See yourself in the other person – consider what you would do or how you would feel if you were in his/her shoes

Seek Knowledge – the facts what can be proven, what has history shown us, what did others do in similar situations; study the lives and writing of wise people.

As I was reading Facebook this morning, I saw a quote from Jimi Hendrix in a fortune cookie:

Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens.

Seek the ‘Light’ – the light of knowledge, yes, but also the light of truth, fairness, integrity and love.

With the SERENITY of acceptance, the COURAGE,/strong> and risk of determined CHANGE, we will be reborn each day in each of us

the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

the courage to change the things I can

the Wisdom to know the difference.

Amen.4
 
 
1 Alcoholics Anonymous, Blue Book
2 Delivered at In The Garden, Trinity Episcopal Church on Capitol Square, Columbus, OH 30 June 2013
3 Delivered at In The Garden, Trinity Episcopal Church on Capitol Square, Columbus, OH 7 July 2013
4 Delivered at In The Garden Ministry, Trinity Episcopal Church on Capitol Square, Columbus, OH, 14 July 2013