Sharing some thoughts

The parable that Jesus told in the gospel reading this morning (Luke 15:1-8) is a very well known account of the love and grace of God, and his desire to seek out and save everyone who is lost. The circumstances are particularly important. Once again, Jesus is talking near the Pharisees and the scribes, those people who were really good at listening in to other people’s conversations, and saying how bad everyone else was. And so Jesus launched into this parable about the lost sheep – 99 were safe, but one was missing. And so the shepherd would go after the one, searching until he found it, and then celebrating the find… Beyond what we have heard this morning Jesus then goes on to talk about the woman having 10 silver coins, and losing one, and then searching for it and having a celebration when it’s found. And in the final parable of this section, Jesus tells the story of the Prodigal Son – the young man who stupidly threw away his fortune, but was then welcomed back into the family ...

Throughout the course of history there have many great motivators – people who have inspired others to reach new heights or achieve ambitions which they never thought they could achieve. One of the most famous speeches in history is the one of Winston Churchill about fighting on the beaches, on the landing grounds, in the fields and in the streets, in the hills and talking about never surrendering. Many have even gone so far as to suggest that that speech marked a turning point for the spirit of people caught up in the Second World War, and led them on to face some hugely difficult days, always confident in their ultimate victory. In the Old Testament reading today from the book of Deuteronomy (30:15-18) Moses is talking to the people and offering them a fairly stark choice – a choice between life and prosperity or death and adversity. He explains how to choose life by following the commandments of God, walking in his way, and openly receiving his blessings. Faced with such a choic...

Winston Churchill is remembered for a huge number of things. He is regarded as one of Britain’s great leaders and remains a hero to many people today, but one of the things that he’s not so well known for is his humility. However when he was asked, "Doesn't it thrill you to know that every time you make a speech, the hall is packed to overflowing?" He replied, "It's quite flattering, but whenever I feel that way, I always remember that if instead of making a political speech I was being hanged, the crowd would be twice as big." Today we live in a celebrity culture. All around us there are pictures of huge celebrities, newspapers and television follow these people everywhere. With the celebrity title often comes wealth and popularity, but many of course have found that just as quickly as they are built up they can be knocked down. In the gospel today (Luke 14:1,7-11), Jesus is once again eating at the home of one of the leaders of the Pharisees, and he wa...