Sermon: Setting Priorities

          You all know that I'm kind of a stickler about setting goals and finding ways to achieve them.  I do this in my own life, and I push for us to do it as a church at each annual meeting.  But maybe what I should be doing is asking that we set our priorities as a church. 

          The disciples were arguing on the road to Capernaum.  Christ had set His own priority as they passed quietly through Galilee, not engaging with anyone.  He didn't want anyone to know, because right now, His aim was to teach His disciples what they needed to know.  There were other times for healing, teaching crowds of people in parables, and still other times for private prayer and meditation.  This was the time He set aside for teaching the disciples.

          So He asked them to explain what they were arguing about.  Their silence spoke volumes.  They had been arguing over who was the greatest among them.  Every single one of them knew that this was not something Jesus would be impressed with, and they figured His disappointment with them would be quite clear.  So they remained silent.  Perhaps this was a situation of "It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt."  (Maurice Switzer, Mrs. Goose; Her Book) 

          But Christ instead, decided to teach them, explaining not only their goal – that of being first – but how to achieve it – by being last of all and servant of all.  Their priority must be in serving those He came to save.  Their responsibility was to welcome everyone, from the smallest child to the tax collector in their own midst.  By doing that, they welcomed Christ, and in welcoming Christ, they welcomed God. 

          Easy words to say, but very difficult words to follow.  How do you set priorities like that?  Our Psalm, Old Testament and New Testament lessons talk about words reflecting where we want our priorities to be, what we want them to reflect.  We hope for wisdom, hope that our actions will reflect wisdom – we pray in the Lord's Prayer, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done.  But how do we ensure that we don't listen to the "counsel of the wicked"?  How do we avoid the words of the ungodly?  How do we make our actions reflect the priorities *set by God*?

          Some of you may have seen the movie, "Witness."  In it, we learn something of the Amish people, and that they avoid modern technology. They have no TV sets in their homes, no telephones inside the home, and electricity is hooked into the barn but not the house. Such a lifestyle seems to us very harsh and rigorous, but an Amish bishop once explained why it is the Amish live this way. He suggested that most technology had in fact had a negative effect on people's lives. Television was a good example. It brought violence and poor ethical values into the home, so much so that many people would like to watch less TV but find they can't.

          Does this mean the Amish are against modern technology? No, explained the bishop. The Amish simply want to keep it in its proper place. The Amish aren't against telephones. In fact he'd had one installed down the lane from his house. A telephone was handy to have in an emergency or to call distant family and friends. But why bring it into the house. "Telephones intrude into the most precious moments of life." said the bishop. "You may be talking to your children or sharing something important with your wife; if the phone rings, you allow it to interrupt what you're saying. The family can be at prayer, and if the phone rings you will stop and answer it. You could be with your wife in bed, and you will allow the ringing telephone to interrupt what you are doing there!"

          Similarly electricity could be a good thing, if kept in its proper place. The Amish in his community had electricity in their barns to refrigerate their milk, but they kept it out of their homes. Why? Because they felt it disrupted the natural rhythms of life. With electricity people stay up late instead of going to bed. With electricity people listen to radios and watch TV that involve them with the outside world rather than their own community.

          What about tractors? If the Amish will use electricity in their barns, why not tractors in their fields? The Bishop explained that with a tractor one person can plow their field on their own. But in using a horse drawn plow the whole family needed to be involved. So rejecting the tractor was a way to create family solidarity.

          The Amish have perhaps given more thought to this issue than most of us have. While we may not agree with the Amish on everything we certainly could follow their lead in asking about how we can set priorities and then make sure that our actions match those priorities. 

          But the clarity of our actions needs to be in consultation with those that our actions affect.  For instance, a man worked very hard to provide for his family, because his family was the most important thing in his life.  He worked long hours, and ensured that his children had the best of everything.  One day, when he got home late after a long day at work, his 8-year-old son asked him how much he made an hour.  He wasn't particularly comfortable discussing this with a child, but his son persisted.  He finally told him, "I'll tell you, but you're not to tell anyone else.  I make $150.00 an hour."  His son thought for a second, and then asked, "could I borrow $20?"  The man got very angry.  His son only wanted to know how much he made so that he could borrow money from him.  He sent the boy to his room.  After a bit, he calmed down, and went to speak with his son, to find out what was so important that he had stayed up late to borrow 20 bucks.  His son got up and went to a box where he saved his allowance.  Inside, was $130.  "Why do you need to borrow $20 from me, when you've already got $130?  What is so important?"  "I want to buy an hour of your time, Dad, so we can do something together."

          That man's priority of putting his family first by providing for them, deprived them of his time, attention and presence.  His intentions were great, but he never thought about how his actions affected his family. 

          Sports is another area where we can see how teams set priorities.  In February 2012 Cory Weissman led out the men's basketball team of Gettysburg College for their last game of the season. Four years earlier he had suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed on one side. Four years of rehab and he was able to walk with a limp, but was still not able to play competitively. But before his stroke he had been on the varsity team and the Gettysburg coach wanted to give him a few seconds on court as a senior. So Cory was nominated captain and led out the starting five for what was both his first and last game for Gettysburg, for he was now due to graduate.

          Knowing the struggle it was just to be there, the crowd and the players from both teams greeted him with wild applause. The Gettysburg coach gave him a few minutes on court before benching him.

          With one minute to go, Gettysburg was well ahead so the coach sent Cory back out on court. The Washington coach called time out and instructed his players to foul Cory Weissman. For those who don't know basketball this was a very generous act, for it meant Cory would be given two shots at the basket.

          Cory takes his place at the free throw line, feels the weight of the ball in his hands, lifts and shoots. It misses badly. But he has a second and final shot left. Again he feels the weight of the ball in his hands, lifts and shoots. This time the ball flies straight through the hoop, and the crowd breaks out in thunderous applause.

          The assistant vice president for athletics at Gettysburg, David Wright, later wrote to Washington College: "Your coach, Rob Nugent, along with his … staff and student-athletes, displayed a measure of compassion that I have never witnessed in over 30 years of involvement in intercollegiate athletics."  This story was told by Frank Record in a piece called, "When there's more to winning than winning."

          So, what are our priorities?  What's the goal?  How do we achieve it?  Can we follow the instructions Christ gave his disciples, to be last of all and servant of all?

          Let us pray:  Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us that what we do for the least of our brothers and sisters we do also for you:  give us the will to be the servant of others as you were the servant of all, and gave up your life and died for us, but are alive and reign, now and forever.  Amen.