May 20

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Tuesday, May 20, Easter Weekday

JOHN 14:27-31a

I give you peace.

Prayerthoughts
a. Perhaps primary among the virtues of the Christian is the whole thought of peace. Am I truly a peaceful person? Does anger overcome me too often?

b. The Lord refers to how the world gives peace. What does that mean for me?

c. The Lord tells us not to let our hearts be troubled. What troubles me most right now?

d. The Lord is looking for the apostles to be happy about his return to the Father. What are my feelings about my own death?

e. The Lord wants us to strengthen our faith in Him. What are the best ways for me to strengthen my faith?.

f. The early believers in Jesus sometimes felt that the devil was coming in some form. There is evil in our world today. What are the biggest evils in the world, and can I do anything about them besides pray for the people involved?

g. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will read Acts of the Apostles 14:19-28 and write an important thought from it.

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Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

ACCEPTANCE OF PAIN

+ The first reading is during Paul’s first missionary journey (46-49 AD)

- there may be an element of exaggeration here,

- but Paul’s determination is striking

- Paul is stoned because he is speaking blasphemy in the Jewish mind

- and yet, immediately after it, he goes right back into the thick of things—to the same town and continues what he is doing

- and in explanation, he says some very important words for anyone dedicated to the service of Jesus:

It is necessary … to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.

+ What Paul suffered was not fake

- his suffering was real—people really didn’t like him: they hurt him; in some instances, they tried to kill him; they tried to get others to shun him

- for the follower of Jesus today, the same applies

- there will be real trials, real problems with what happens if we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior

- Paul’s message to us as an educator is this: we must undergo those trials

- Jesus at the Last Supper discourse in the Gospel had already said it:

- the peace that he is preaching is not the same as the world gives

- the world saying peace at all costs—pain and conflict is bad

- Jesus’ peace implies that there will be personal trials to insure the peace of Jesus

+ Generally we do not like to undergo trials for anything, let alone for the chance to have eternal life, even if we want to grow in the spiritual life

- we see those trials come to us in various ways:

- first we see the trials in our own bodies: we don’t like the sicknesses, the weakness, getting old, the dependence on drugs and medical personnel and treatment, the special regimen that disease causes

- there are also trials coming from our belief in Jesus—moving us to act in certain Christian ways that are difficult

- our human natures urge us to complain, or give up, or become angry, or take it out on others or the like

- but Jesus assures his followers that he, Jesus, has control of the “ruler of the world” as he calls him in the Gospel

- the Lord will guide us all the time if we turn to him

+ People who want deeper spiritual lives must be accepting of the trials that happen to them

- we have to resolve to seek God’s peace in whatever circumstances in which we find ourselves, even when things don’t seem to be going the way we want them to go.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Sorry I’m Here For Someone Else" – Benson Boone

Our Dating Pattern

LUKE 1:26-34

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, ro a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled ar what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor wirh God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be grear and will be called Son of the Most Hight, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?”

SONG

“Sorry I’m Here for Someone Else”: a song whose story is told for all practical purposes by its title. The man in the relationship is waiting for his current fiancee, meets an old flame, realizes that she is the one that he currently likes, and promptly breaks up with the one he is waiting for.

The familiar story of the Annunciation in Luke’s Gospel has many facets to it. One of them perhaps is the fact that Mary did not “have a man” yet for marriage. She was “betrothed” to Joseph which meant that there was still an opportunity for some other man to come into her life.

It is not unlike the situation of “dating” in the modern day where we choose who we want for marriage. Young people are in the process of figuring out who they want to be with for the rest of their lives. The whole process is one of the complications of the eventual setting up of a family.

Thus, the situation in Benson Boone’s song can easily be pictured. The man in that situation had not made up his mind yet about who to marry. Not to mention either of the women in the situation, although to a lesser degree. It is the man who is in the situation of having to choose. And he hasn’t made a choice yet.

In modern life, the situation brings about many so-called “break-ups” of relationships. For Christian people, such a “break-up” calls for truly Christian virtues. There must be good communication between the two, the two have to agree that their relationship may be temporary, and there must be no “act of commitment” on either person’s part. That is, both of the couple must see that their relationship is only in the process of “growing”.

That is not easy to do, and often there will be hurt feelings in the process. Such is the situation of the song. The man in the relationship makes the decision that someone in his past is more acceptable at that moment, and he probably doesn’t bring about the “break-up” in a truly Christian way. It certainly would have hurt the lady who was late in coming to the meal.

It has been said that growing up in our world may be the most difficult time in a person’s life. If it is true, one reason for it is our dating patterns.

Prayer

Good and gracious God, one of the first moments of choice in our lives is whether to marry or not to marry and if we choose to do so, who we will marry. Give us the grace to choose our future partner well and to always be Christian in our approach. Be with us, we pray

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GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: The dating pattern in countries where we choose our spouse can be very difficult.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What does the song "Sorry I’m Here For Someone Else" teach young people?

2. Do you agree with analysis of Joseph and Mary’s “dating”?

3. It has been said that “growing up” will be a lot easier if the choice for a future partner was made for the young person. Do you agree?

4. How old should a person be before they get married? Why?

5. Do most young people realize just what a permanent commitment to marriage really is? Yes or no and why?

6. What are the reasons for marriage breakdown?