Category: Uncategorized (Page 148 of 188)

Sometimes it’s not what is said, it’s how it’s put into the story.

Jesus said, “What can I do for you?” The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” “On your way,” said Jesus. “Your faith has saved and healed you.”

The story of the blind man comes on the heals – and in the same chapter as – the story of the rich man asking Jesus how to get into heaven, and then the Sons of Zebedee trying to finangle prime seating in the days of glory. Only recently have I began to appreciate the master storyteller and how the placement of the pericope means as much as the story itself. Sometimes it’s not so much the single character that gives us insight into the message as the multiple characters as they stand in a line.

I’ve always enjoyed the story of the rich man. He’s a nice guy, has always obeyed, and goes the distance just to assure that he’s doing alright. Unfortunately Jesus tells him he needs to part with his good fortune in order to truly inherit the kingdom. Bummer. Now this passage has been taken for more rides than the tildewhirl. Some find justification in being rich by an old biblical urban legend of the gate in which a camel had to get on its knees to get through, saying it’s ok to be rich, but you have to bow low. I personally think that’s something rich people say to feel better about being rich. The disciples are slightly disappointed to know that the rich might not inherit the kingdom because, to them, the rich can have anything they want. So if they can’t have it, who can?! Apparently the idea that there are some things money can’t buy isn’t quite on the radar.

Then James & John do their thing, asking to be on the right and left of Jesus. I believe in other passages it’s their mother that asks this request, but here the boys gather up the courage. I was thinking about it in context… there are a lot of people who are expecting Jesus to save them, but it’s a highly political view of Messiah. They’re making their way to the City and something Big is going to Happen, but I really think the disciples (and not just the 12) are anticipating, as JJ would call it, The Revolution (in current day context, this is when our family will head to Montana to “live off the land”. I really should blog about THAT sometime).

Jesus even flat out tells the disciples that when they get to the City, instead of leading what seems a successful revolt, he will be handed over to the authorities and killed. But they just don’t get it. Or don’t want to.

So this idea that there’s a coming Kingdom is very real. The rich guy tries to assure his citizenship through being good. The Zebedee boys try to get in by the “who you know” methodology. And in both instances Jesus tries and tries to explain that it’s not what you do or have or who you know, it’s your dependence on God that will walk you through the gate. He says it straight up: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.”

And then we meet the beggar. “Mercy, have mercy on me!” he cries. In other words, “I can’t do it myself, I don’t even deserve it, but please!” He wants something. He can’t buy it. He can’t coerce power to get it. And he knows it.

Jesus says, this is the kind of faith that saves and heals.

It’s not the stuff, or the lack of stuff. It’s not the perfection one feels when abiding by the rules. It’s not being a somebody, or even a no-body (because the disciples were, largely, a bunch of no-bodies). I think it might be the value you place on it; what you think it can do for you. I’d go as far to say as religion can be put in here as well. Jesus warns of the yeast of the Pharisees more than once, because of their belief in what it could do for them.

If I could just have… if i could just be… if I could only talk to you…. as soon as I can… we always think there’s another gate into the kingdom – a back door – but Jesus says right here that living in a state of knowing your need, your powerlessness, walks you down the red carpet.

when we got out of the car this afternoon in the be-a-u-tiful weather the little man wanted to do some wondering. it’s quite amazing to think that this is his first chance to really explore the outdoor world. cracks in the pavement, bugs, mulch… last summer he was pretty immobile so his explorations only included the grass blades or green beans that mama provided in front of him. now the the driveway is his laboratory and he was digging it.

one of the especially cute things he did was in effort to continue his walking from the driveway into the garage. there is a *slight* step up where the concrete starts. H, with his mother’s confidence with all physical challenges, decided it was quite the stretch for his little feet, so he decided to drop to his knees for an old-fashioned crawl to get across such a ravine. it cracked me up, seeing as how the “step” was no more than an inch high.

it made me realize, again, that sometimes our challenges are all a matter of perspective. sometimes it’s a lack of confidence, sometimes it’s because our obstacles are, in relative comparison to our size, a bit overwhelming. sometimes we just have to learn that we do, indeed, have within us the power to overcome, but you may have to hold mommy’s hand to find that out.

we don’t have much money right now. it’s a general fact of life when you live off of one, part-time income. this causes you to think about money quite a bit more, and now that jj will be certified to teach personal finance and has found a few postings that he could be doing so, it has prompted some good conversation in our house this evening.

i offered jj a few thoughts on lesson planning, and then he turned on lost. but i just couldn’t stop. he tried to nicely redirect me, but as i went to bed i realized i just had to “get it out” as i say. if i were teaching teenagers about personal finance, here are the top 5 things i think they should know.

1. You’ll never have enough money to fix your problems. I’m sure that Bill Gates fights with his wife on occasion. I bet Donald Trump suffers from indigestion here and there. Frustrations and inconveniences don’t disappear with more money, and in fact they are probably enhanced – just read the tabloids. However, popular opinion teaches us that money will solve our problems, or at least make us happy. It won’t.

2. Money decisions aren’t “yes or no” questions. It’s not a matter of “do i want this latte?” and “do i have enough money for this latte?” Instead, I think successful purchasing decisions are weighed against all financial decisions. With this money, i could buy a latte or i could pay for my son’s college education. Money decisions shouldn’t just be based on current desires, but also on future goals. Sure, sometimes you’ll make decisions for the current desires (I want to watch a movie now more than i want to go out to dinner this weekend), but at least it’s an informed decision.

3. Your past decisions should inform, but not control your current and future financial decisions. So you have some debt. So you struggle with impulse purchases. That doesn’t mean you’ll live in that forever. With some hard work, change of perspective and new habits you can get to a place of reaching future goals. For kids, this can translate that their parents’ financial position is not necessarily their financial fate. This might translate to the rest of life as well.

4. Know where your money is coming from and where it is going. When you don’t know those 2 things, you’re not controlling your money but your money is controlling you (ah, darn. i was doing so good at avoiding the cliches up til then!). Somewhere in this mess it brings an understanding that it’s not “yours” but rather that you’re merely managing it for a time.

5. Someone is making money off of the decisions you make. You’d better know who. Here’s my example for this: i was talking / thinking about food (not unusual) and a comment was made about what is needed for a kid at a certain age. Then there was a comment about how Gerber makes this or that, so it was probably something a baby needed. But here’s the thing: Gerber’s #1 concern is not my baby’s health. Not that they’re intentionally harming kids. But Gerber’s decisions are driven by how much it costs to produce, market and sell a product and how much money they can make doing so. Gerber’s decisions aren’t based on my needs or desires, but on theirs. This is true of all the products out there – they exist because someone is going to make a buck. But if we live with this acknowledgment, then we can be freed to make the best decision we know how. We’re empowered not to trust Gerber to make the decision for us, but to be part of the equation of our decision.

So there’s my top 5. That’s what i’d want kids (now specifically my kids) to know about managing money. Coming from someone who currently doesn’t have much. I’d be curious to know what would make it into your journal at 9:30 on a tuesday night about this topic.