Opening Prayer
It is easier to coach
than to play; to be wiser as a observer than as a participant; to
require honesty of others than to be honest; to recognize others in
danger than assess one’s own risk; other’s foolishness, than one’s
own stupidity. Therefore we need each other as David needed Nathan–a
friend who told it like it is.
Help us develop friendships of sufficient depth that we might
receive healthy confrontation to our everlasting benefit. Amen.
Painting
Nathan Beach, “The
Petting of the Lamb”
http://www.lowfashion.com/artists/beach_nathan/25_a_paradise_for_gangsters/02_the_petting_of_the_lamb.jpg
2 Samuel
11:26-12:13a (The Message, E. Peterson)
Narrator: When Uriah's
wife heard that her husband was dead, she grieved for her husband.
When the time of mourning was over, David sent someone to bring her
to his house. She became his wife and bore him a son.
But God was not at all pleased with what David had done, and sent
Nathan to David. Nathan said to him,
Nathan, the prophet: There were two men in the same city–one rich,
the other poor. The rich man had huge flocks of sheep, herds of
cattle. The poor man had nothing but one little female lamb, which
he had bought and raised. It grew up with him and his children as a
member of his family. It ate off his plate and drank from his cup
and slept on his bed. It was like a daughter to him.
One day a traveler dropped in on the rich man. He was too stingy to
take an animal from his own herds or flocks to make a meal for his
visitor, so he took the poor man's lamb and prepared a meal to set
before his guest.
Narrator: David exploded in anger.
King David: As surely as God lives, the man who did this ought to be
lynched! He must repay for the lamb four times over for his crime
and his stinginess!
Nathan: You're the man! And here's what God, the God of Israel, has
to say to you:
God’s Word through Nathan: I made you king over Israel. I freed you
from the fist of Saul. I gave you your master's daughter and other
wives to have and to hold. I gave you both Israel and Judah. And if
that hadn't been enough, I'd have gladly thrown in much more. So why
have you treated the word of God with brazen contempt, doing this
great evil? You murdered Uriah the Hittite, then took his wife as
your wife. Worse, you killed him with an Ammonite sword! And now,
because you treated God with such contempt and took Uriah the
Hittite's wife as your wife, killing and murder will continually
plague your family. This is God speaking, remember! I'll make
trouble for you out of your own family. I'll take your wives from
right out in front of you. I'll give them to some neighbor, and
he'll go to bed with them openly. You did your deed in secret; I'm
doing mine with the whole country watching!
Narrator: Then David confessed to Nathan,
David: I've sinned against God.
Nathan: Yes, but that's not the last word. God forgives your sin.
You won't die for it. But because of your blasphemous behavior, the
son born to you will die.
Questions for
Reflection
1) Wrong-doing, coverup,
exacerbation, denial, confrontation, recognition, [repentance,
restitution, consequences]. Can you illustrate these well-worn steps
from other’s experience, or your own?
2) Why do we take so long to accept that we can be and are
forgivable?
3) Are the consequences too much to bear of our own failures?
“Life Can Be
Like That”
Fred Craddock tells this
story. He says, “I have never been to a greyhound racetrack, but
I've seen them on TV. Those great, long-legged dogs chase a
mechanical rabbit around the track. When these dogs get to where
they cannot race, the owners offer them for adoption. If no one
adopts them they are destroyed.”
He tells of visiting in a home where they had adopted a greyhound.
The dog was lying there contented and Craddock reported this
conversation he had with the dog. Craddock said to the dog, "Are you
still racing any?"
The dog said, "No, no, no, I don't race any more."
"Do you miss the glitter and excitement of the track?" Craddock
said.
No, no." the dog said.
"Well, what's the matter? You got too old?"
"No, no, I still had some race in me."
"Well, did you not win?" said Craddock.
"I won over a million dollars for my owner," said the dog.
"Then what was it, bad treatment?"
"Oh, no, they treated us like royalty when we were racing," said the
dog.
"Then what was it?"
"I quit."
"You quit?" asked Craddock.
"I quit!" said the dog.
"Why did you quit?"
"I discovered that what I was chasing was not really a rabbit, and
so I quit."
Craddock said the dog looked at him and said, "All that running,
running, running, running, and what I was chasing was not even
real!"
Prayer
Here we are, God — a
planet at prayer. Attune our spirits that we may hear your harmonies
and bow before your creative power, that we may face our violent
discords and join with your energy to make heard in every heart your
hymn of peace.
Here we are, God — a militarized planet. Transform our fears that we
may transform our war fields into wheat fields, arms into
handshakes, missiles into messengers of peace.
Here we are, God — a polluted planet. Purify our vision that we may
perceive ways to purify our beloved lands, cleanse our precious
waters, de-smog our life-giving air.
Here we are, God — an exploited planet. Heal our hearts, that we may
respect our resources, hold priceless our people, and provide for
our starving children an abundance of daily bread. Amen.
from Earth Prayers, by Joan Metzner
Closing
Blessing
One: Go out from here
and live lives worthy of the one calling which we all share. In
humility, gentleness and patience, speak only what is true and
loving and so grow into the unity that is ours in Christ.
All: And may God the creator reshape your hearts;
May Christ Jesus, the bread of life, sustain you always;
and may the Holy Spirit unite you in the bond of peace. Amen.
