Christian Reflection and Prayer

During World War II, Joe Louis, the champion heavyweight
boxer, was one of several celebrities scheduled to say a
few words at a fund-raising rally for the Navy Relief Society.
"I was nervous," Louis said. "I didn't know what to say.
Somebody told me the President would be listening on the
radio, so I especially wanted to get my speech off to a
good start. Just before I was called up to the mic, I asked
a friend sitting next to me how I ought to start off. He told
me to say something upbeat about the war, like, 'My
fellow Americans, God is on our side!' As I walked up to
the stage, I stumbled on the steps and lost my
concentration, so instead, when I got to the mic I said,
'My fellow Americans we are on God's side.'" Mr. Louis
may have stumbled on the steps, but he didn't stumble
at the mic. It's never a question of whether or not "God
is on our side." Rather, it's a question of whether or not
we are on God's side.

Verse

But they were silent, for on the way they had argued
with one another about who was the greatest. He sat
down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever
wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.”
Mark 9:33-35

Voice

Those who love their dream of a Christian community
more than they love the Christian community itself
become destroyers of that Christian community even
though their personal intentions may be ever so honest,
earnest, and sacrificial.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Prayer

O God, even as we turn our ear towards all anger, all
regret, all cynicism aimed at the church, we pray that
you give us strength to love our communities themselves.
Amen.

It is God who judges:
     He brings one down, he exalts another.
Psalm 75:7

A Jewish folktale is told about a young couple who
lived around the 12th century. The couple was newly
married and still getting to know each other. The
wife knew that her husband had previously been
extremely poor to the point where he was a beggar.
The husband knew that his wife had been previously
married but was abandoned by her spouse. Now, the
new husband was an extremely successful
businessman, and the two were very happy.

The wife had a tradition. Every day she would prepare
a feast for lunch and her husband would close his
business to come home and enjoy the meal with his
wife. One day, as they had just begun to eat, there was
a knock at the door. The husband opened the door to
find a beggar pleading for food. The husband, who
remembered what it was like to be in such dire
circumstances, told the poor man that he could enjoy
the entire meal prepared by his wife; then once the poor
man finished eating every last morsel, he was sent away
with a bag full of coins.

After the beggar left, the husband noticed that his wife
looked pale and he asked her what was wrong. She
replied: “In my first marriage, I also prepared an exquisite
lunch just as I do for us. One day, a beggar came to our
door as I sat down to eat with my husband. My husband,
however, yelled at the poor man and sent him away with
nothing. After that, we lost all of our money and my
husband left me.”

The wife continued, “That beggar who came today was my
previous husband.” Her husband replied, “I know.” “But
how?” asked the wife. Her husband replied: “I was the
beggar that came to your door.”

It is best to always keep in mind that our current situation
is not necessarily our permanent destination — no matter
what our situation may be today. Our job is to serve God
as best as we can within the circumstances that we find
ourselves in today – knowing that everything can be
completely different tomorrow.

With prayers for shalom, peace,
Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein

(from Holy Land Moments)