It's Not Right! It's Not Fair! It's the Kingdom of God!

March 7, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

It is not at all difficult to look into the world and see things that we think are "unfair" and "unjust." My own experience is that often when I try to pay attention to what is going on within and around me, I find that I am filled with judgment. Furthermore, more often than not, our efforts to "set things right" end up only making matters worse.

Jesus told a delicious little story, often called "the parable of the laborers in the vineyard," where laborers who were hired late in the day were paid just as much as those who had worked all day long in the sweltering sun. Not fair is it?

I amplify on this theme and give my interpretation of this parable in the talk that follows.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Click here to Download intro material for unit of study: Why the Parables.pdf

Click here to Download text 20100307.pdf

Click here to Download presentation slides 3:7:10 - It's Not Fair.pdf

Click here to Download audio 20100310.mp3

Words, Strings, and Other Such Mind-bending Discoveries - Dr. Bob Pinney

February 28, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

During our January 31st Ordinary Life Class we heard Dr. Bill Kerley
say, "God is accessed through love, not words."

Surely this simple statement is an excellent summary of the life and
message of Jesus of Nazareth. Yet love is often expressed with words.
Jesus used words to convey his love for his disciples and others by
telling them so. Even his only commandment to us to "love one another"
is preserved and activated with words.

The lectionary Bible references used during our church services
January 31st were all concerned with telling, speaking and saying.
(Jeremiah 1:4-10; 1 Corinthians 13:1-3; Luke 4:21-30)

One of my maternal grandmother's favorite sayings as she sought to
wipe away the tears and comfort a child who felt maligned by one of
their peers, was "sticks and stones may break your bones, but WORDS
can never hurt you."

Life experience has shown, however, the opposite is often true. Sticks
and stones may indeed break your bones, but it's words that REALLY
hurt you.

On February 28th, I'm looking forward to talking about words,
especially words that are the source of many of our social and
spiritual conditions.

See you on the 28th,

Dr. Robert I. (Bob) Pinney

(Typically, there is no text available for Sundays when we enjoy guest speakers.)

Click here to Download audio 20100228.mp3

An Unhappy Ending

February 21, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

From childhood on we are taught in our culture to look for and believe in "happy endings." Life as it is, however, has difficulties that lead to less than happy outcomes. It is when we ignore this or try to sidestep it that we really create for ourselves "unhappy endings." Sometimes we hold on to something we believe to be the truth so tightly that when the real truth presents itself to us, we don't open the door to it. This leads to true unhappiness. Perhaps nowhere do we cause ourselves more difficulty than when we try to impose our notion of "justice" on a situation.

That's a summary of what the "life talk" I gave in Ordinary Life this week is about. A full copy of the text I used is below. This is one of those times when I personally think the audio version is better.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Cick here to Download theme study intro material: Why the Parables.pdf

Click here Download text 20100221.pdf

Click here to Download Keynote presentation - An UnHappy Ending.pdf

Click here to Download audio 20100221.mp3

Shrewd or Screwed

February 14, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

I can't recall a time, except perhaps the 60's, when there has been as much rancor and divisiveness among the American people as now. Looked at from a psychological perspective this behavior can be seen as a way we are coping with anxiety. Scared people and groups of people get busy, withdrawn and fragmented as a way to cope with being scared. Expressed anger is a mask for fear and sadness.

When we are behaving in such a way we are not able to see what needs to be done that is in our true best interest. Scared people settle for short term security and go unconscious about "the big picture."

Jesus told a parable about a man who, when he found himself in desperate circumstances, acted shrewdly. We are in a position of great privilege and great vulnerability on several fronts and it is in our best interest to be shrewd.

That, to the best of my ability, is a hint of what I talked about in Ordinary Life this week. A copy of the text I used is below.