Today’s Readings: Psalm 78:1-31; Nehemiah 9:1-15; Matthew 5:27-37; Romans 4:1-8; Psalm 78:32-72
Featured Reading: Romans 4:1-8
One of my favorite movies from the 1980’s was the movie Beaches. I loved it because it did such a great job telling the story of a wonderful friendship between a bold and brash character by the name of Cecilia “C.C.” Bloom (played by Bette Midler) and a quiet and conscientious character by the name of Hillary Essex (played by Barbara Hershey). One of the most effective scenes in the film in terms of character development occurred in a conversation between C.C. and an admirer. After blathering on for a long term about herself, C.C. finally takes a breath and says: “Okay, so enough about me. Let’s talk about you. What do you think of me?” I love that line because it does a beautiful job of capturing our tendency to make everything about us. The apostle Paul challenges our tendency to do that when – in talking about the story of Abraham – he notes: “… the story we’re given is a God-story, not an Abraham-story” (Romans 4:2 from The Message). As people who live in a day and age that focuses on the individual first and foremost, it is so tempting to follow society’s lead and make our stories about us. Today, on this seventh day of Lent, I invite you to spend some time contemplating who your story is really ultimately about. Til next time…
Featured Reading: Romans 4:1-8
One of my favorite movies from the 1980’s was the movie Beaches. I loved it because it did such a great job telling the story of a wonderful friendship between a bold and brash character by the name of Cecilia “C.C.” Bloom (played by Bette Midler) and a quiet and conscientious character by the name of Hillary Essex (played by Barbara Hershey). One of the most effective scenes in the film in terms of character development occurred in a conversation between C.C. and an admirer. After blathering on for a long term about herself, C.C. finally takes a breath and says: “Okay, so enough about me. Let’s talk about you. What do you think of me?” I love that line because it does a beautiful job of capturing our tendency to make everything about us. The apostle Paul challenges our tendency to do that when – in talking about the story of Abraham – he notes: “… the story we’re given is a God-story, not an Abraham-story” (Romans 4:2 from The Message). As people who live in a day and age that focuses on the individual first and foremost, it is so tempting to follow society’s lead and make our stories about us. Today, on this seventh day of Lent, I invite you to spend some time contemplating who your story is really ultimately about. Til next time…
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