Forget the Duck!

Two young children were visiting their grandparents for the summer. Johnny was given his first slingshot. He practiced shooting in the woods, but he missed everything he aimed at.

As he returned to his Grandma's back yard, however, he spied her pet duck. It wasn't the only duck she kept, but it was her favorite. On an impulse, he took aim and let it fly. This time he didn't miss. His stone struck and killed the duck.

The boy panicked. He didn't mean to hurt the bird - he was even sure he would miss! But he had killed it. His panic grew to desperation and he hid the duck in the woodpile, only to look up and see his sister watching him. Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing to her grandparents.

After lunch that day Grandma said, "Sally, let's wash the dishes."

Sally said, "Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen today. Didn't you, Johnny?" She looked straight at him and whispered, "Remember the duck!" So Johnny did the dishes.

Later, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing. Grandma said, "I'm sorry, but I need Sally to help make supper." Sally smiled and said, "That's all taken care of, Grandma. Johnny wants to do it." Again she whispered, "Remember the duck!" So Johnny stayed while Sally went fishing.

Johnny did both his chores and Sally's for several days, until, finally, he could stand it no longer. He confessed to Grandma that he'd killed the duck.

His Grandma looked at him and said, "I know, Johnny." She gave him a big hug and added, "I was standing at the window and saw the whole thing. But because I love you, I forgave you. I just wondered how long you would let Sally make a slave of you."

Johnny's Grandmother was more ready to forgive than he was even to ask for forgiveness. We, too, are surrounded by more grace than we may realize. But a disturbing inner voice often whispers, "Remember the duck! Remember the duck!" Some people are so busy being enslaved by this inner voice that they will never allow themselves to be forgiven.

Maybe it's time to forget the duck! Forget the duck...and be free.

[Story found on Steve Goodier's Spiritual Support System website, lectionary reading for March 9, 2008)

The Message of the Cross

Two brothers, who had never agreed on much of anything, finally had a conversation about the thing they agreed on least of all:

“The message of the cross is foolishness!” said one brother. “And you, my brother, are a fool! You claim allegiance to this God who came to earth and lived among us. But what happened to him, in the end? He was crucified! On a cross! First they beat him until the blood covered him. Then they took nails and drove them into his wrists. They put him up on a cross to die a slow, humiliating death. And he died.

I ask you, what kind of God is that? What kind of God cannot even save himself from a human execution?

I’ll grant you that this Jesus of yours was an influential man in his time. Sure, he spoke like a prophet and gathered a following. But look at what happened at the end. Your precious Bible tells you that even his closest followers deserted him. Because they saw the truth of his weakness. They saw that it all ended on a cross. What kind of a God is that? And what kind of a fool are you?”

His brother replied, “You are right, my brother. I am a fool. What you say makes perfect sense, and no eloquent words from me will change that. But I know that the message of the cross is the power of God. Because I know that only an extraordinary God would allow himself to be crucified. Only a God who loved humanity so deeply would refrain from saving himself. Only a God whose power is unimaginable would allow himself to be killed in this way. You are right. It makes no sense. But that is the power of the cross. And you are wrong, so wrong, my brother, when you say that it all ended on a cross.”

Scripture, Tradition, Reason and....Experience

Here's a story of a woman named Bethany who found herself, to her great surprise, volunteering to go to Guatemala on a medical/dental mission trip with her church. Bethany believed that the Bible tells us we should help those who are in need, and she understood that there were many who greatly needed medical and dental care in the remote mountain villages of Guatemala. Her church had participated in trips to this region before, and Bethany’s heart had been touched by the stories of those who had served.

Bethany had long supported the mission trips financially and had even been involved in purchasing, sorting and packing medicines. But she had never experienced a mission trip before. Furthermore, Bethany didn’t have any medical training, so it never occurred to her to go. But one day it was announced that some new equipment had been purchased that would make it possible for non-medical volunteers to test vision and distribute standard eyeglasses according to the prescription determined by the equipment. Bethany felt moved to attend the training for the vision equipment, and before she knew it, she was on a bus leaving Guatemala City.

To say that Bethany immersed herself in the experience would be an understatement. Although she had always supported the missions of the church financially, she had never before been in such direct contact with such great humanitarian need. Her emotions at being among the people of the Guatemalan village overwhelmed her. On her second day, Bethany tested the vision of an older woman. Finding her to be extremely nearsighted, Bethany fitted her with glasses. As the woman put the glasses on, a group of young children came running toward her. The woman looked into their excited faces, then turned to Bethany. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she said to the interpreter: “I can see them! I can see their faces! Thank you. You have helped me see my grandchildren for the first time!”