Proper 21C / Ordinary 26C / Pentecost +16
September 29, 2019

From ‘Me to We’

Amos 5:1a, 4-7; 1 Tim. 6:6-19; St. Luke 16:19-31

As to those who in the present age are rich, …they are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, ready to share, thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.  1 Timothy 6:17a, 18-19

The story Jesus tells of the rich man and Lazarus is not a story about the afterlife.  It is the story of this life and what we do with our wealth.  St. Paul chimes in in his letter to Timothy insisting that simply taking hold of wealth does not lead to taking hold of the life that really is life.  Amos states God’s case against the wealthy who ignore the poor and are oblivious to those in need around them.

This parable comes in response to an earlier verse in this chapter of Luke: 

‘The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this and they ridiculed him [Jesus]…” St. Luke 16:14

A closer look at this parable of Jesus reveals that God reverses the order of things.  The rich man has no name, but Lazarus is named.  Their roles are reversed in the afterlife.  And God questions the rich man’s use of his power and wealth when alive.

All of the readings for today are a clear call to start living from ‘Me’ to ‘We.’

The ‘Me, Myself, and I’ mentality

There are those of us caught up in the daily grind.  Many of us are just too busy for anything or anyone else.  As a result we sometimes get into a ‘me’ mentality.   The ‘me’ mentality is a way of thinking that focuses on self-interest above all else and leads us to act accordingly.

Surprisingly the ‘Me ‘mentality has infected even those who are to be prime models of service.  In one study, a group of Christian theology students found themselves running late for a lecture they were told they had to give.  The students had the dilemma of making it from one side of campus to the other with barely enough time.  On the way a shabbily dressed man lay moaning in the doorway. 

Some of them even had to step over him in order not to be late.  Only 10% one in ten – stopped to help.  The irony was that they were on their way to give a lecture on the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Source:  Me to We: Finding Meaning in the Material World by Craig Kielburger and Marc Kielburger, p.66]

When we are caught up in me, myself, and I – we become blind to the ‘Lazarus’ at our gate.  Life is devoted to looking out for number one.

This kind of thinking has influenced folks who say:

“I’ve done my part, paid my dues – now it my turn to sit back.”

There is a sense of entitlement that plagues people --whether it is in church or other organizations.  There is a cry to rest on one’s laurels of the past.  As if to say, “The institution owes me!”

That sense of entitlement puts self at the center, rather than others.  It hasn’t grasped God’s grace and the abundance of God’s gifts to be shared  no matter what age!

Those who operate out of a sense of entitlement are often blind to the Lazarus at one’s gate.

Rather than ask the question “What do I have to share at this stage in my life?”  Some folks just quit sharing.  Yes, there are certain limitations as we grow older.  At different stages in life we have different contexts, but in each of those contexts God has given us gifts to share with others. 

I have also heard "Let's take care of our own."  In other words - there has been too much reaching out.  Why even today we hear:  "America First!"

And who are those others at our gate?  Who is the ‘Lazarus’ at the gate?

At Spring Creek elementary school just a few blocks from us there are kids at our doorstep.  85% of the children at that school are so impoverished that they qualify for subsidized lunch program.  That means their family are living on the edge of poverty.

Wealth, we all too often think of wealth in terms of money.  What if we thought of it in terms of time?  Can you imagine what one hour a week dedicated to tutoring a child at Spring Creek elementary school might do for that child and the long range effect it could have?

It may mean one less golf game or bridge club or brunch – but the impact on that student just might be life changing. 

Are not these children the ‘Lazarus’ at our doorstep?

A true story told to me by one of our local pastors: 

An elderly lady at the church this pastor served has a debilitating disease.  She is no longer mobile.  This pastor visited this homebound woman.  The pastor found her in a state of loss and depression.  At her pastoral visit the pastor asked, “Now what do you love to do?”  “I love to knit!” she proudly announced.  The pastor said, “I love to knit, too!  Let’s pray about it!”

In a few weeks the pastor heard from this disabled homebound person.  The woman decided to knit squares and then have the squares made into lap blankets.  Soon they asked other members of the parish if they enjoyed knitting and 3 or four ladies stepped forward. 

Now a group known as ‘Knit Together’ uses the disabled ladies knitted squares and combines them with their own to create lap blankets.  They sometimes even meet at her house!

The point is that each one of us has wealth –whether it is money, time, talents, or gifts. 

The point is that there is a Lazarus at our gate that we may not even be aware of yet. 

The point is that the Christian calling is to move from me to we.

The Christian life is never just about me – it is about us.  The Christian life is about the world.  “God so loved the world…” St. John writes.  He did not write:  “God so loved me!”  Of course God loves you as an individual but God’s love does not stop there. 

Christianity is not primarily about me “being saved,” but is primarily about sharing the grace and love that God has so abundantly bestowed on us.  Each one of us is given God’s grace and we are called to share that grace.

Especially at this time in our history where there are children separated from their families in cages at our southern border.  

Yet don’t be discouraged by the enormous problems in the world.  There are enormous problems – 21,000 people on this planet die each day due to lack of food and proper nutrition.  Wars continue – conflict and violence.  Do not be discouraged.  You and I can and do make a difference.

We have opportunities:  our monthly food ingathering for two local pantries, the hunger walk.  These are intentional responses to the ‘Lazarus’ at our door. 

Yes, everyday -  it is the small stuff that counts – one action, one act of faith, one small step at a time.

Craig and Marc Kielburger describe this Christ-like philosophy in their book Me to We:

“Me to We [is] a way of living that feeds the positive in the world – one action, one act of faith, one small step at a time.  Living Me to We has the potential to revolutionize kindness, redefine happiness and success, and rekindle community bonds powerful enough to change your life and the lives of everyone around you.”  [Introduction, page IX]

Christ certainly espouses moving from Me to We.  It is indeed a Christ-like way of life.  In fact it is the way to change our lives.  There is hope because the small step, the act of faith, the one action makes a big difference. 

The food given to our food pantries helps those who are unemployed or unable just to make it – to make it.  A letter written to our Congressional leaders on behalf of the immigrants or advocating for keeping the Food Stamp program will make a difference.

Walking for the hungry in the CROP Walk or generously sponsoring a walker helps to establish micro-businesses in developing countries as well as supply our local soup kitchens.  25% of those funds raised return to Rockford.

There is tremendous hope to turn the tide toward a world of “WE.”  Maybe just putting up a small world map somewhere on a wall that we will see daily can remind us of our global connections.

The call to faith in Christ is to live a real life – connected to each other and this world.  The call to faith in Christ means living in hope because what you do will make a difference. 

Archbishop Desmond Tutu writes:

“At a tender age I discovered that it isn’t doing spectacular things that make you remarkable in the eyes of God, but instead, it is when you light just one candle to dispel a little bit of the darkness that you are doing something tremendous.  And if, as a global people, we put all the little bits of good together, we will overwhelm the world.”

Christian living is a constant movement from me to we!

Amen.

May be quoted with permission.

kennstorck@gmail.com